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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24224620">One Hundred and Eight Roses</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/secretkeeper18/pseuds/secretkeeper18'>secretkeeper18</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Reverse Hades/Persephone AU [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Ancient Greek Religion &amp; Lore Fusion, Anyway I heard Percy Jackson's getting a Disney+ show so i wrote this, Awkward Katsuki Yuuri, Character's Name Spelled as Viktor, Inspired by Hades and Persephone (Ancient Greek Religion &amp; Lore), Kidnapping, Kind of modern au too i guess?, Language of Flowers, Long-Haired Victor Nikiforov, M/M, Magic, Role Reversal, Viktor is Persephone, Yuuri is Hades, but not really kidnapping, technically</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-05-17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-05-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-02 18:00:53</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>23,471</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24224620</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/secretkeeper18/pseuds/secretkeeper18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>“So,” Yuuri interrupted, awkwardly. “Sorry again, for intruding. We should be on our way, so if you could let me down, that’d be great.”</p>
<p>Viktor looked up at him, then his face broke into a smile. “Hmmm,” he said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. Then, he decided, “Nah.”</p>
<p>Yuuri blinked. Viktor had gone back to rubbing Vicchan’s belly, offering him pats and scratches and not even looking back up at Yuuri.</p>
<p>“What?” Yuuri asked, confused. Maybe all the blood had rushed to his head, but he was pretty sure Viktor had just said "no" to the King of the Underworld. </p>
<p> “No,” Viktor said, cheerfully, not even bothering to look up at this point. “I’m kidnapping you. Who’s a good doggie? Yes, you are, Vicchan!”</p>
<p>***</p>
<p>In which Viktor kidnaps the Lord of the Dead and imprisons him in his garden, and Yuuri is just too awkward to leave.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov, background Otabek Altin/Yuri Plisetsky</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Reverse Hades/Persephone AU [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1779895</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>52</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>584</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Inspired by <a href="https://www.tumblr.com/dashboard/blog/hawk-and-handsaw-blog/69317753644">this post</a></p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>As King of the Underworld, Yuuri had a lot of responsibilities resting on his shoulders. He spent his days rifling through files upon files of the newly deceased, consulting with his top advisors, holding court to listen to appeals for cases long put to rest, and reading applications for reincarnation. In the beginning, Yuuri had not minded the job. He was protective of the Underworld and his subjects, and proud of the judgement system he had created since his appointment as Lord Hades, God of the Dead. </p><p>However, in recent years, Yuuri found himself in a slump. His duties, once integral to the system of the Underworld, grew mind numbingly boring. It made Yuuri bitter and miserable, though he loathed to admit it, being surrounded by death, day in and day out. And what was it all for? Spirits would enter his realm for all of eternity, so there was no progress. While the other gods got to create and improve life for mortals, Yuuri was the end of the line. There was nothing left for him to do. </p><p>So he spent several centuries completely bored out of his mind. Not even the screams of the wicked, punished in ironically fitting ways, entertained him anymore. He filed paperwork, he judged souls, he did everything he was expected to do, and he found that, eventually, he didn’t mind the numbing, endless cycle. </p><p>The one aspect of the job that Yuuri absolutely abhorred, however, were house calls. </p><p>They had grown far more frequent in recent years, with mortals reproducing more than ever. This meant that Phichit was beginning to turn to Yuuri for help collecting souls.</p><p>It was the one thing that forced him to leave the Underworld. Yuuri had a growing suspicion that his long time friend was perhaps exaggerating his workload in order to get Yuuri to help him. Though, Yuuri acknowledged grudgingly, the surprisingly cheerful god of death didn’t really need to exaggerate the growing number of souls needing to be escorted to the underworld. </p><p>And it wasn’t necessarily the extra duties that annoyed Yuuri. He didn’t mind it, even if he was getting sick of whiny spirits who couldn’t let go of the fact that time was up. What he minded, however, was constantly running into the other gods. </p><p>Now, it wasn’t that the other gods didn’t like Yuuri, or even that he didn’t like them. He interacted with several minor gods on a daily basis. He just... didn’t like spending too much time with certain gods, particularly the pantheon. They were loud, constantly shirking their responsibilities to chase some mortal’s skirt, and, worst of all, were always trying to engage Yuuri in some sort of conversation. What Yuuri hated the most about them, however, was what they represented. </p><p>Life. </p><p>He had had a seat in the pantheon, very early on. And, very quickly, Yuuri realized that his interests perhaps did not align with the other Olympians as much as he had initially believed. It was just frustrating, especially once the novelty of being King of the Underworld wore off. </p><p>Michele would go on about the importance of his job, pulling the moon across the sky. Sara would chime in about her sun chariot, before quoting some new poem she had just written or talking about a new piece of music she had just composed. Seung-gil, though usually quiet, was especially proud of the mortals’ free-thinking, naturally argumentative natures, and never failed to bring this up in conversation. JJ was never sober, rambling on about some new drink the mortals had created. </p><p>Eventually, Yuuri got sick of it, and stopped going to Olympus, instead choosing to hole himself up in the Underworld, only keeping an ear open for any news from Olympus via Emil, who, as the Messenger of the Gods, was the only other Olympian who dared step foot in the Underworld. </p><p>Which is how he learned of Viktor. </p><p>On one delivery, Emil had offhandedly mentioned the young nature god, who spent more time gallivanting throughout the mortal world than on Olympus and often had to be chased down by his mentor, Yakov. As the God of the Harvest, it made sense that he would take him under his wing. Yuuri had caught glimpses of him in the mortal world, when Phichit sent him out on house-calls. </p><p>He was the most beautiful person Yuuri had ever seen, with long, silver hair that shined when caught in the sunlight and bright blue eyes that sparkled with joy, with life. Viktor was ethereal, his magic and spirit bursting with liveliness. He was the God of Nature, of living things. Yuuri couldn’t bear the thought of ruining him, of corrupting Viktor with his presence, so drenched in despair and death. So, he spent the next millennium stealing glances of the nature god from afar. </p><p>Meanwhile, he pointedly avoided the other gods, especially the Olympians, like the plague. Which is why house calls were becoming such an annoyance, because the other Olympians didn’t seem to have the same issue that Yuuri had with seeing them. </p><p>The last time he had helped out Phichit, he had to retrieve the soul from a man who had drowned at a beach. He had narrowly escaped with the man’s soul before Celestino peeked out from the waves and tried to get Yuuri’s attention. The God of the Seas was always looking for an excuse to chat, and, coincidentally, Yuuri was always looking for an excuse to <em>not</em>. So, Yuuri pretended not to see him and whisked himself and the mortal soul, who was still screaming about it not being <em>fair</em>, he was <em>too young to die</em>, blah, blah, blah, back to the underworld. </p><p>Though, that wasn’t nearly as bad as the time Yuuri had been on a house-call in Paris during Fashion Week; the very week when Chris’s powers were at full peak and his domain expanded to encompass basically the whole city. So, the God of Beauty had found Yuuri before he could escape with the soul of a poor fashion designer who had not looked both ways while crossing the street.</p><p>“Yuuri!” Chris had cried out. Yuuri had cringed, because he couldn’t just leave now. That would be horribly rude of him, since it was obvious that he had heard Chris. With no other options, Yuuri had turned around, a polite smile on his face. </p><p>“Hi, Chris,” Yuuri had said uncomfortably. </p><p>“Haven’t seen you in centuries!” Chris had slung an arm around his shoulders. “How have you been, <em>mon ami</em>?”</p><p>Yuuri tried to nonchalantly shrug Chris’s arm off. “Err,” he had said, intelligently. “Same old, same old, I guess.”</p><p>“You should stay a while!” Chris had insisted. “See the sights, meet some people…”</p><p>The God of Love flashed a charming smile, leaning in closely. “I could be your personal tour guide,” he purred. </p><p>Yuuri shrunk backwards. “Uh,” he stammered. “Thanks for the offer, but I’ve actually got a lot of work to do. Raincheck?”</p><p>Chris had shrugged, leaning back. “Sure thing, Yuuri,” he had said. “I’ll add that to all the other rainchecks.”</p><p>He probably hadn’t meant it to sound passive aggressive, but the guilt still registered nonetheless. Yuuri had winced, then apologized again before sinking into the ground and back to the Underworld. </p><p>Phichit had laughed at him, completely unsympathetic to his plight. “You idiot,” he had snickered. “Chris was trying to ask you on a date!”</p><p>Yuuri had merely sunk into his seat, glad that no one else was in the throne room; it was not befitting of the King of the Underworld to be sulking on his throne while his best friend made fun of his awkwardness. </p><p>“Don’t you have more souls to collect, <em>Thanatos</em>?” Yuuri had finally snapped, using Phichit’s formal title to show his ire. </p><p>Phichit had merely shrugged, unfazed. “Whatever you say, <em>my lord</em>,” he shot back, using Yuuri’s title mockingly. Then, his large, black wings sprouted out of his back and he flew from the palace before Yuuri could even come up with a decent comeback.</p><p>When had his subjects stopped respecting him? Yuuri wondered. Then, he thought: probably around the same time he awkwardly asked everyone to stop referring to him as “my lord,” “my liege,” or “my king,” insisted on giving everyone a fair number of sick and personal days, and promised dental. Which had been about a week after he had been appointed Lord of the Underworld, so it was safe to say he never had their respect to begin with.</p><p>Still, it was easier to talk to Phichit and his subjects than the other gods, who, while always being cordial, even friendly toward him, were wary of his titles as the renowned God of the Dead, Lord of Darkness, King of the Underworld. So, Yuuri really couldn’t find himself connecting all that well to the others, preferring the company of Phichit and his close confidants, the Furies. Even, he admitted, when they got on his case about going out more and making more friends. </p><p>“You should really try to attend more of those Olympian get-togethers, Yuuri!” Yuuko would often encourage. </p><p>“They do send you an invitation to every event. I can’t even remember the last time you went to one,” Minako would then add. </p><p>“I did go!” Yuuri would groan in response. “To the last Annual Banquet! I got so drunk, I don’t remember anything!”</p><p>“Doesn’t count,” Mari would declare. “Sorry, little brother, but you need a life.”</p><p>And, too tired to repeat to Mari that he was, in fact, older than her, Yuuri would retreat to his chambers and continue the never-ending process of judging souls, busying himself with his work. Then the cycle would repeat. </p><p>That is, until Phichit burst into his office one day. </p><p>“Yuuri, I need your help with a house call.”</p><p>Yuuri sighed, looking up from a file of a man appealing his case from the Fields of Punishment to Asphodel. “What is it?” he asked, weariness heavy in his tone. Phichit grinned, undeterred, and held out his iPhone.</p><p>“There’s this poor nymph who died on the surface. You should go meet her! Offer her comfort, ya know, a shoulder to cry on...”</p><p>Yuuri blinked, then squinted at the screen at the picture of a young, beautiful tree nymph. Then, he pinched the bridge of his nose and exhaled deeply. “Phichit, is this another one of your attempts to get me to woo someone?”</p><p>“Uh,” Phichit said, shiftily. “No?”</p><p>“<em>No</em>.”</p><p>“Aww, c’mon! Even if you don’t wanna date her, I do have a lot of assignments today. Could you help me out?”</p><p>Yuuri sighed, looking back down at the file on his desk. He quickly skimmed the contents of the folder, and scoffed. He slammed down his stamp on the application, marking the page with bold, red ink spelling out the word "REJECTED" in all caps. </p><p>“Fine,” Yuuri relented, standing up and stretching. His joints popped and cracked from the sudden change in position. </p><p>“Yes!” Phichit beamed. “Thanks a ton, Yuuri. I owe you one! I’ll send the file to you immediately.”</p><p>Yuuri pulled out his phone- a gift at Phichit’s insistence, otherwise he never would have bothered- and scrolled through the file. </p><p>“You should take Vicchan with you,” Phichit suggested cheerfully. “He could use a walk.”</p><hr/><p>The garden was beautiful, and stretched for acres of land, far beyond what Yuuri could see, even with his glasses. The area Yuuri rose out of the ground from was surrounded by several willow trees, perfectly manicured hedges, and was filled with bright, multi-colored patches of various flowers. There was a long path, covered partially by an arch with vines and pink flowers wrapped around it, winding down to a pond, which had a wooden bridge guiding travelers to the other side. The water was dotted with white and pink water lilies and bright green lily pads, and was clear enough that Yuuri could see koi fish swimming alongside frogs and a family of ducklings. In the distance, Yuuri could see stretching fields of wheat, ready to be harvested. Vicchan started barking, eyes locked on the fish in the pond with clear intention.</p><p>“No, Vicchan,” Yuuri scolded, tearing his eyes away from the fields of beautiful sunflowers and tulips. “No bothering the fish.”</p><p>Vicchan huffed, but seemed to understand. Instead, all three of his heads nosed at the dirt on the edge of the waterline. Yuuri wanted to stay longer, admire the hard work that must have been put into the garden and take in the breathtaking sights. However, he had a job to do.</p><p>He and Vicchan made their way down the path and across the bridge. The path was lined with lit torches, oddly enough. Yuuri would have thought it too risky to keep so many fire hazards around such a beautiful garden. They finally stopped at the tall, billowing willow tree that draped partially over the crystal clear pond. At the base of the tree sat a crying nymph. </p><p>“Hello,” Yuuri said, quietly. He was uncomfortable around people crying, but it was a necessary part of his job. Besides, it was easier to talk to the dead than the living.</p><p>The nymph looked up, and her eyes widened when she saw him. “Oh, no, please!” she cried. “It’s not time yet, my tree is still healthy!”</p><p>“Yes,” Yuuri said, as calmly and soothingly as possible. “It is. And you will help the soil that will nurture the tree, for years to come.”</p><p>The nymph stopped crying, though her eyes were still watery. “R-really?” she sniffed. </p><p>Yuuri nodded. “Of course,” he said, and held out his hand. “It’ll be okay, I promise.”</p><p>She wiped her eyes one last time and reached out, taking Yuuri’s hand. With that, her corporeal body shimmered before dissolving into a shower of golden sparkles, which settled around the base of the tree and sunk into the ground. </p><p>Yuuri looked down to the spot where the nymph once sat. In her place was a sapling, not even buried into the ground fully, with delicate branches and a few, tiny, pink buds. Gently, Yuuri reached down and cupped the base of the tree, careful to mind its roots, which were half covered in soil that Yuuri had also scooped up. </p><p>“Let’s find you a good spot, hm?” Yuuri decided, straightening up. “Someplace with a lot of sunlight.”</p><p>The tree, predictably, did not respond. </p><p>Yuuri looked around, spotting an empty plot of land several yards away from the original willow tree. He nudged a spot on the ground with his shoe. </p><p>“Vicchan?” he commanded. “Dig.”</p><p>The cerberus barked once (well, once, but three barks at the same time) and excitedly began pawing at the ground where Yuuri had marked. The hole was eventually deep enough for Yuuri to bend down and place the sapling gently. Vicchan helped him push the soil back into place, planting the sapling into the ground. </p><p>Yuuri stood up again, brushing his hands off as he did. He admired his work, surveying the area one last time. Then, he looked up and squinted. The sun was shining directly in his eyes, giving the new sapling a perfect spot. Still, he could have sworn he saw a glimmer of something golden in the tree’s branches-</p><p>Vicchan barked, pawing at the hem of Yuuri’s robes.</p><p>“Alright, let’s go home, Vicchan,” Yuuri finally said. Vicchan whined loudly, his heads bowing and looking up at Yuuri with a sad expression. </p><p>“Oh, alright,” he relented, sighing. “Let’s cross the bridge again, then we can go.”</p><p>Vicchan perked up immediately at his words. His tail wagged furiously, and he jumped a couple times in excitement before rushing toward the bridge. Yuuri couldn’t help but laugh. He moved to follow him, but felt something pull at his ankles, resisting his movements. </p><p>“What the-“</p><p>Before Yuuri could even look down, his whole world was suddenly flipped. It felt like his legs were pulled from right out under him, and his body fell forward and hit the ground. He let out a yell as he was hauled up in into the air, swinging violently from his now bound ankles. </p><p>Vicchan barked, running back to him. Yuuri looked back down at him, who was just out of reach. His glasses had been knocked off his face, and he could barely see the brown figure of his dog jumping up toward him, as if it would help the situation. </p><p>“Well, look who decided to drop by!” a voice said. </p><p>Yuuri, still swinging helplessly, managed to twist his body to face the direction of his voice. </p><p>“Who’s there?” he demanded, squinting at the figure approaching. Yuuri could barely make out the tall, broad shouldered figure. The man chuckled.</p><p>“Ah, allow me to help you,” he said, stepping closer until they were face to face. </p><p>Yuuri let out a squeak, both at the sudden proximity and in recognition. Even upside down, he could recognize Viktor. </p><p>The man was as beautiful as the last time Yuuri had seen him, at the last Annual Banquet on Olympus, only a few months ago. The God of Nature looked completely at ease in his own season, his silver hair nicely contrasting his beautifully cut dark suit. He had been in deep conversation with his mentor, Yakov, about their plans for the upcoming harvest. Viktor had looked incredibly bored, but the God of the Harvest had demanded his undivided attention. </p><p>Yuuri had taken one look at the beautiful god, then turned right on his heels to the bar and downed sixteen glasses of nectar. </p><p>Up close, Viktor’s eyes were bluer than Yuuri could have ever dreamed. His hair looked soft to the touch, flowing around his shoulders and cascading down his back, unlike during the banquet, when he had tied it back. Viktor was just about the most beautiful person he had ever seen, and he was currently only a few inches away from Yuuri’s face.</p><p>Yuuri swallowed nervously. “Viktor- I mean, Lord Persephone-“</p><p>“Just Viktor,” he corrected, amusement swimming in his eyes. He reached down and grabbed Yuuri’s glasses, sliding them gently back on his face. </p><p>“Uh, thank you,” Yuuri said, feeling his face grow warm. He was grateful that he was hanging upside down now; it was a perfect excuse for his face growing as red as it probably was. </p><p>“So,” Viktor murmured, casually brushing his hair out of his face. “To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit to my garden?”</p><p>“<em>Your</em> garden?” Yuuri repeated, stricken, before it clicked.</p><p>The torches. The fields of wheat. The golden apples, dotting the very tree that he was currently hanging by the ankle from.</p><p>Yuuri was in the Garden of Persephone.</p><p>He was an <em>idiot</em>.</p><p>“Lord Hades?” </p><p>“Yuuri,” he blurted out.</p><p>Viktor cocked an eyebrow, silent but questioning.</p><p>“Just... call me Yuuri,” Yuuri offered sheepishly. </p><p>Viktor looked amused, still. “That didn’t answer my question."</p><p>“Oh!” Yuuri felt his face flush more. “Sorry, I- uh… Phichit, I mean, Thanatos sent me- he needed help collecting souls. There was a nymph who died here, I helped her reincarnate- um-“ Yuuri pointed in the general direction of the nymph’s new sapling. Viktor didn’t follow his gaze, and instead continued to stare at him. </p><p>“Interesting,” was all he said. </p><p>Yuuri gulped. “Uh, so, yeah. If you could just let me go then, I can get out of your hair.”</p><p>“Hm,” Viktor contemplated, leaning back away from Yuuri’s face now. He nearly let out a breath of relief. Viktor then glanced down, at where Vicchan sat just under Yuuri’s head, looking at the god curiously. He hadn’t sensed any hostility from him, nor any fear from his master, so he had yet to attack. </p><p>Which was a good thing; Yuuri really didn’t want to deal with Lord Demeter if Vicchan mauled his protege. </p><p>“And who’s this?” Viktor cooed, his attitude immediately flipping. He bent down to inspect his dog, undeterred by the overly excitable, three-headed canine. </p><p>“Er, his name’s Vicchan,” Yuuri offered, wondering just what was going on.</p><p>“Aw, what a good boy, standing by his master,” Viktor crooned, petting the middle head and scratching behind the right head’s ears. Vicchan panted with excitement, laying down and rolling onto his back to present his belly, something the usually aggressive guard dog had never done outside of Yuuri’s own court. His tongue lolled out, looking up at Viktor with anticipation.</p><p>Yuuri’s mouth fell open, stunned at the sight. Most people usually ran away screaming at the sight of Vicchan. Viktor, however, obliged the cerberus, giving Yuuri’s dog belly rubs while showering him in compliments. </p><p>Yuuri had never wanted to be a dog more in his life.</p><p>“So,” Yuuri interrupted, awkwardly. “Sorry again, for intruding. We should be on our way, so if you could let me down, that’d be great.”</p><p>Viktor looked up at him, then his face broke into a smile. “Hmmm,” he said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. Then, he decided, “Nah.”</p><p>Yuuri blinked. Viktor had gone back to rubbing Vicchan’s belly, offering him pats and scratches and not even looking back up at Yuuri.</p><p>“What?” Yuuri asked, confused. Maybe all the blood had rushed to his head, but he was pretty sure Viktor had just said <em>no</em> to the King of the Underworld. </p><p> “No,” Viktor said, cheerfully, not even bothering to look up at this point. “I’m kidnapping you. Who’s a good doggie? Yes, you are, Vicchan!”</p><p>“Vicchan,” Yuuri ordered. “Stop him!”</p><p>Vicchan made a confused noise, as if wondering why his master would give such an order to the nice human with clever hands which pet him so well. </p><p>“Vicchan,” Viktor called. “Do you want the ball?” Out of nowhere, he held up a rubber red ball. Vicchan immediately went ballistic. He hopped to his feet, jumping up and down and running in circles. </p><p>“Fetch!” Viktor threw the ball far enough away that even Yuuri lost sight of it. Immediately, Vicchan went bounding for it, all three heads yipping in delight. </p><p>“Traitor!” Yuuri cried out in despair.</p><p>Viktor straightened up. “Right then!” he chirped, looking far too casual for someone who just declared to be kidnapping the God of the Underworld. “As my prisoner, you cannot leave this garden. The wards will stop you if you try, and you’ll end up trussed up more than you already are. Otherwise, you have free reign of the grounds.”</p><p>Yuuri gaped. “What- why are you doing this?”</p><p>Viktor shrugged. “You surprise me, Yuuri,” he said simply. Then, Vicchan appeared, the ball in the left head’s mouth. </p><p>“Good boy!” Viktor declared, as Vicchan dropped the slobbery ball at his feet. </p><p>Yuuri was pretty sure he wasn’t going to survive this endeavor, one way or another. </p><hr/><p>Viktor did eventually let Yuuri down from the vines holding him suspended midair after about an hour, when Vicchan began to settle down and doze off.  Yuuri had immediately grabbed Vicchan, ignoring his dog’s whines, and made a break for the edge of the garden, only to be blocked by a wall of prickly vines. </p><p>“Told you,” Viktor had sung. “You’re my prisoner, remember? I didn’t expect the God of the Underworld to have such a poor memory.”</p><p><a id="return1" name="return1"></a>Viktor, apparently satisfied that Yuuri wouldn’t be able to escape, then began to inspect the buttercups<sup>[<a href="#note1">1</a>]</sup>, turning his back on Yuuri. Meanwhile, Yuuri poked at the vines, inspecting the handiwork. They were surprisingly powerful wards, especially for a young minor god. Regardless, Yuuri was <em>ancient</em>, not to mention one of the original Olympians. Viktor’s arrogance spoke of his youth, his inexperience in dealing with the older gods, and his child-like naïveté in thinking he could contain one as powerful as <em>Hades</em>. Yuuri could tear through the wards like butter under a hot knife, but something made him hesitate.</p><p>It wasn’t like the Underworld would miss him that much, if he was gone for the day. And he hadn’t taken a break in forever, and Minako was always on his case about taking a vacation, wasn’t she?</p><p>Besides, Viktor was here. Yuuri might never get a chance to be this close to the beautiful god ever again.</p><p>So, he stayed for the rest of the afternoon. He was too awkward to really try to strike up a conversation with Viktor, but his strange kidnapper didn’t seem to mind. Instead, he showed Yuuri around the gardens, babbling on about the meaning behind certain flowers, how to take care of them, and the adequate amount of sunlight they required. Yuuri was surprisingly entranced by the incessant babbling; he cared little for plants, given their rarity in the Underworld, but he could listen to Viktor talk about them all day.</p><p>At the end of the day, he made his next escape attempt. This time, vines wrapped around his arms and torso, keeping him pinned to the trunk of a tree. </p><p>“My wards are too powerful for you to break through,” Viktor boasted, smiling.</p><p>Yuuri couldn’t help but snort a little, incredulous at the nature god's hubris. He tested the strength of the vines; they were strong, yes, but not enough to really hold him if he so desired to break free. Still, it would be rude to simply rip through them; Viktor had clearly put in a lot of work to strengthen them. Yuuri decided to try diplomacy first.</p><p><a id="return2" name="return2"></a>“I need to return to the Underworld,” Yuuri told him. Viktor waved his concerns aside, opting to pick up the metal watering can from the ground and to bend over so that he could water the patch of ranunculuses<sup>[<a href="#note2">2</a>]</sup>. Yuuri averted his eyes, blushing to his roots.</p><p>“Why are you doing this?” Yuuri tried, when Viktor was finished.</p><p>Viktor hummed a little. “Well,” he said, thoughtfully, as if he had never considered this, “I’m awfully bored here. You’re the most interesting thing that’s happened in a long time. It gets lonely, you know.”</p><p>Yeah, Yuuri could relate. Though, he did have some friends, like Phichit and the Furies, and Takeshi when he bothered to go out and visit the ferryman. From what Yuuri could see, Viktor had no visitors. Still, he probably shouldn’t be <em> kidnapping </em> other gods and <em> keeping them prisoner </em> just to try to make friends.</p><p>“Your escape attempts are fun, too,” Viktor added, as an afterthought. “Makes things around here more interesting than it’s been for years.” His blue eyes met Yuuri’s, and he froze, too enraptured by them to continue his struggle. </p><p>“<em>You’re </em> interesting,” Viktor said, softer this time, after a beat of silence. </p><p>Yuuri, his heart thudding in his chest and his face warm from the attention, leaned against the bark of the tree and resigned himself to his fate.</p><p><em> Well, one more day couldn’t hurt, could it? </em>he thought, reluctantly. He knew what it was like to be alone in his own home, after all. If he had to stick around this beautiful garden alongside the target of Yuuri’s affections for the past century, what was the harm?</p><p>One day quickly turned into two, which turned to five, which turned into a full week. Yuuri still couldn’t bring himself to leave. Viktor was completely cocky, now that his wards had held up against a god of Yuuri’s stature for a full week. Yuuri wasn’t too sure how to break it to him that they were about as sturdy as paper mache, and he didn’t think he wanted to anymore. </p><p>Instead, Yuuri found himself faking more and more escape attempts. Viktor seemed to enjoy the chase, and Yuuri was only lying to himself by pretending he wasn’t also having fun.</p><p>There was one attempt, about a week after Yuuri first entered the garden, that resulted in vines wrapping around his arms and pulling his arms up until his toes could barely touch the ground. Viktor didn’t even acknowledge it; he simply whistled a few notes to himself while weeding the vegetable garden.</p><p>“Potatoes for dinner?” Viktor asked, tone casual.</p><p>Yuuri twisted his hands a bit to get more comfortable, before sighing. “Sure.”</p><p>Then there was the time Yuuri tried to escape by simply sinking back into the ground. This unfortunate attempt resulted in the ground turning into quicksand and locking him in place, buried in the sand up to his knees. Yuuri couldn’t help but be impressed. Even if he was trying to actually escape, this would have at least taken him some time to get out of. This time, Viktor took notice, if by “notice”, Yuuri meant “burst out laughing until there were literal tears in his eyes.”</p><p>“I really should be getting back,” Yuuri groaned, tugging fruitlessly at his legs in hopes of pulling himself out of the sand. “The Underworld must be in complete chaos right now! Who knows what the spirits are doing without my presence to guide them in order? It must be anarchy! And surely my subjects have noticed that I’ve gone missing!”</p><hr/><p>
  <em>Meanwhile, in the Underworld…</em>
</p><p>“Elysium,” Yuuko said, glancing through the file briefly before sliding it neatly into the filing cabinet. She reached for the stack of new folders, filled with unprocessed souls awaiting their fates in the afterlife.</p><p>“Asphodel,” Mari declared, taking her own file and slamming it onto the largest pile.</p><p>“Asphodel,” Minako said, as well, and closed the manila folder before discarding it to the same pile of ever-growing files. </p><p>“Punishment,” Yuuko decided, after glancing through the new file and clicking her tongue in disapproval, sounding bored out of her mind. </p><p>Phichit entered the throne room, frowning at the three Furies seated in front of the empty throne.</p><p>“Hey guys,” he greeted. “Where’s Yuuri?”</p><p>The three stared at each other.</p><p>“Um,” Minako said.</p><p>“Well…” Yuuko shrugged.</p><p>“We haven’t seen him,” Mari finally admitted, looking relatively unconcerned. “Not for, like, a month now.”</p><p>Phichit’s eyebrows rose. “You don’t seem worried.”</p><p>Minako stood, stretching out her arms a bit. “Yuuri’s a big boy,” she said, waving a hand. “He can handle himself. Besides, it’s about time he used his vacation days. He hasn’t taken a break in centuries.</p><p>Phichit shrugged. “I guess so,” he agreed. “It’s not like the Underworld is gonna fall apart without him.”</p><hr/><p>Viktor merely raised an eyebrow at him. </p><p>Yuuri huffed, but conceded a bit. “Okay, well, I <em> think </em> they’ll notice eventually.” </p><p><em> I </em> hope <em> they would notice, </em> he thought, sweat dropping, <em> when their king mysteriously vanishes. </em></p><p>“I’m surprised you haven’t grown bored of me already,” Yuuri grumbled, after another fake escape attempt that left him lying flat on his back, glasses knocked askew and wheezing for breath from outrunning the horde of deer that appeared out of nowhere to block his path.</p><p>Viktor hadn’t laughed, like Yuuri had expected. Instead, he had frowned and looked at Yuuri contemplatively.</p><p>“Never,” Viktor said, seriously, holding out a hand to help him up. Too flustered to think of anything else to say, Yuuri simply took the hand and ceased his escape attempts for the rest of the day.</p><p>The next attempt ended in Yuuri sitting in the grass, pouting, as spiked vines sprouted from the ground and surrounded him in a cage. Though Viktor’s wards were weak, Yuuri had to appreciate the creativity behind them.</p><p>“Right,” Viktor said, sounding amused. “I think I’ll keep you in there for a bit. I can’t keep an eye on you constantly, you know. I have duties.”</p><p>Yuuri sputtered at that. So far, in the time he had been here, he had only witnessed the nature god tend to his plants, play with Yuuri’s dog, and brush his stupidly beautiful long hair. </p><p>“You can’t keep me here forever!” Yuuri told him, exasperated. He had thought the nature god would have been bored of him long ago, but here he still was, clearly enthralled by Yuuri’s presence and subsequent “imprisonment.”</p><p><a id="return3" name="return3"></a>“Yes, I can,” Viktor informed him. He was leaning against the base of a tree, lazily twisting the stems of dandelions<sup>[<a href="#note3">3</a>]</sup> around each other. Vicchan, the traitor, was snoozing on Viktor’s lap. Some guard dog, he was. </p><p>Yuuri decided he was done “trying to escape” for the day. He pretended to slump onto the ground, apparently defeated, and took to silently watching Viktor. </p><p>“What are you making?” Yuuri asked, peering at Viktor’s hands with curiosity. </p><p>Viktor glanced up, then looked back at the flowers between his fingers. “I’m making a flower crown,” he explained.</p><p>“Oh,” Yuuri said, not sure where he was going with this. “... can you show me?”</p><p>Viktor looked up at him fully now, surprise coloring his features. </p><p>Yuuri ducked his head, blushing now. “Uhh, I mean, you don’t have to,” he hastily added.</p><p>“No,” Viktor said, softly. “I can.” He waved his hand, and suddenly, dandelions sprouted up in the grassy area inside Yuuri’s cage. </p><p>“You take two, first. The one with a longer stem will be the base...” Viktor patiently began to show Yuuri how to delicately fold the dandelions together. Viktor’s fingers were nimble, deftly twisting the thick, green stems together so that they folded together neatly into a presentable crown. Yuuri, on the other hand, fumbled with the precise folds, hands unused to the foreign movements. Still, Viktor persisted, repeating steps a few times until Yuuri caught on and could replicate the movements on his own.</p><p>By the time Sara’s sun chariot had passed over the horizon and Michele’s moon chariot reached higher into the sky, Yuuri had managed to finish his first flower crown. In that same time, Viktor had finished three more, and had placed them patiently on all of Vicchan’s heads. </p><p>“It looks good,” Viktor complimented, as Yuuri inspected it. </p><p>“It doesn’t look as good as yours,” Yuuri admitted. The stems were clumsily wrapped in some places, and some of the yellow dandelion heads looked crooked and loose.</p><p>Viktor snapped his fingers, and the vines receded back into the ground. Yuuri scrambled to his feet, still clutching the flower crown to give his hands something to do. </p><p>Viktor gently took the crown, inspecting it with a thoughtful hum. “Not bad for a novice. With more practice, it’ll start looking like a crown fit for a king.” Then, he reached up and placed it over Yuuri’s head with a wink.</p><p>He felt his face grow warm. “I... uh,” he managed out. “I don’t think any of my subjects will take me seriously if I wear this.”</p><p>Viktor chuckled at that. “The King of the Dead wouldn’t wear a flower crown before his underlings?”</p><p>Yuuri could only <em> imagine </em> the ridicule. The Furies would probably call him <em> cute </em>, Tartarus forbid. He shuddered at the thought. Viktor seemed to take this as an answer, and laughed a little.</p><p>“Can I trust you to not escape, tonight?” Viktor asked, turning suddenly and letting out a yawn. “I haven’t slept since your arrival.” Which was almost a month ago, now.</p><p>“You sleep?” Yuuri asked, confused.</p><p>Viktor shrugged. “Of course,” he said. “It’s fun. Do you not?”</p><p>Yuuri couldn’t remember the last time he slept, truthfully. He didn’t need it, not really. And he was always just so busy. Why would he waste a few hours literally doing nothing when there were souls to judge? Applications to process? Death didn’t stop for anything, after all; least of all for Yuuri. He shook his head. </p><p>A frown tugged on Viktor’s lips. Yuuri hated the expression on his face; a smile was far more suited for the nature god. </p><p><a id="return4" name="return4"></a>“Here,” Viktor said, suddenly pulling on Yuuri’s wrist until they both were lying on the soft, grassy ground. Already, sweet peas<sup>[<a href="#note4">4</a>]</sup> were sprouting up around the grass surrounding Viktor’s body. It was something Yuuri had noticed, early on in his stay in Viktor’s garden: flowers just seemed to sprout around him, usually when he was deep in thought or had a strong, emotional reaction to something.</p><p>Yuuri let out a yelp when he hit the ground. “Viktor-“</p><p>Viktor’s arms were suddenly surrounding him, his front plastered at Yuuri’s back. “Sleep,” he commanded, nuzzling his face into Yuuri’s back. Vicchan, clearly feeling left out, padded over and curled up in Yuuri’s chest. </p><p>He tensed. “But, I-“</p><p>“Your escape attempts can wait for morning,” Viktor cut him off. “Go to sleep.” </p><p>Trapped between Viktor and Vicchan, Yuuri had no choice but to close his eyes and succumb to sleep for the first time in centuries. </p><hr/><p>Yuuri wasn’t exactly sure how much time passed since he first stepped into the garden of Persephone. After the first few- several- thirty-six escape attempts, Yuuri ran out of ideas to attempt to escape, but it seemed there was no further need for a buffer; they seemed to have found more common ground than Yuuri’s increasingly ridiculous prison break plots. </p><p>Instead of half heartedly trying to dig a tunnel out of the garden with Vicchan’s aid, he and Viktor would feed the squirrels curious enough to approach them, or refill the bird feeders hanging from the oak tree on the other side of the pond, or pick the ripest tomatoes from the vegetable garden. Viktor didn’t acknowledge his lack of further escape attempts, but he didn’t seem to mind the change. Yuuri was still sure Viktor would tire of him, eventually, but that day had yet to come.</p><p>“I was thinking of expanding the orchard,” Viktor said, one afternoon, not even two months into Yuuri’s “imprisonment”.</p><p><a id="return5" name="return5"></a>Yuuri made a noise of acknowledgement, not even bothering to open his eyes. He was relaxed, for the first time in his very long life. They were lying on the grass beside the brook, listening to the water run down the stream while lavender<sup>[<a href="#note5">5</a>]</sup> sprouted up from the ground around Viktor. The brook was a bit away from the pond and the willow tree, instead running through the extensive orchards of apples, cherries, oranges, pears, and pretty much every other fruit Yuuri could think of. He liked the area, for the most part. It offered more shade than the rest of the garden, and after a millenium of hardly leaving the Underworld, he wasn’t exactly the biggest fan of the perpetually sunny garden.</p><p>“Though, maybe no more apples,” Viktor allowed. Yuuri privately agreed; three-quarters of the orchard was just different variations of apples. </p><p>“Any suggestions?” Viktor then asked, after a long pause.</p><p>Yuuri cracked his eyes open to peek at Viktor. He was sitting upright, gazing around the orchard with a fond look on his face.</p><p>“There isn’t that much plant life in the Underworld, you know,” Yuuri said, dryly. “My knowledge of most living things is sort of lacking.”</p><p>Viktor turned to look at him, a curious expression on his face. “Oh, none?” He sounded surprised.</p><p>“Well,” Yuuri amended. “There’s some, I suppose. Minami visits me often, so we keep some plants and herbs around for him to use in spells and stuff.” The young god of magic had, for some reason, latched onto Yuuri about a millennium ago, and insisted on constantly showing up and trying to make friends with him. Eventually, Yuuri had just decided to go with it.</p><p>“Like what?” Viktor asked, excitedly.</p><p>Yuuri blinked. “Well…” he trailed off, imagining the courtyard outside of his palace, filled with herbs and special plants that the Minami would often spend time in, babbling excitedly to Yuuri when he bothered to stop by and say hello. The God of Magic was really the only one who used the courtyard, and Yuuri was hardly a gardener. The garden was probably a withered mess by now, from lack of care.</p><p>“I’m… it’s not really my specialty,” he said, lamely. “But… we have a big cypress tree, right outside the palace. I’ve been growing it for centuries now. And we have asphodel, literally everywhere in the Underworld. It’s probably the only thing we have more than souls, actually. And there are poppies- Minami doesn’t really use it, often, but Leo does, when he visits. Says it helps improve his sleep magic, and…”</p><p>Yuuri stopped. Viktor was watching him, looking enraptured as Yuuri prattled on about his garden. His eyes were shining, and he wore a small smile on his face. It hit him, suddenly, that maybe Viktor wasn’t keeping him around just because he was <em> entertaining </em>, but because he genuinely<em> liked </em>him. The thought made his hands clammy and his throat tighten.</p><p>“And?” Viktor pressed eagerly.</p><p>“We have pomegranates,” Yuuri said, softly, mind coming to a screeching halt. In his mind’s eye, he imagined the pomegranate tree, thick with gray leaves and ripened, blood red fruit. “My favorite fruit. It’s the only other tree we have. It’s… right outside the window of my chambers, actually, so when I look up from my desk, I can see it right outside.”</p><p>Viktor was beaming. “Perfect!” He clapped his hands together. “We can plant a pomegranate tree!”</p><p>“Eh?” Yuuri sputtered. “Wait, <em> we</em>?”</p><p><a id="return6" name="return6"></a>But Viktor was no longer paying attention. Instead, he was standing up, pulling Yuuri with him, and tugging him along the stream and toward the edge of the orchard. Each step left behind a trail of tiny red buds that Yuuri distantly recognized as bouvardia<sup>[<a href="#note6">6</a>]</sup>.</p><p>There was a warm feeling in his stomach, Yuuri realized. He wasn’t sure what it was, something about the feel of Viktor’s hands, calloused from years of yard work and hands on gardening, that made his chest tighten and his stomach twist with nerves.</p><hr/><p>“Can I ask you something?” </p><p>Viktor looked at him. “Of course,” he answered easily. </p><p><a id="return7" name="return7"></a>The two were sitting under the magnolia<sup>[<a href="#note7">7</a>]</sup> tree, watching the tiny buds blossom every time Viktor waved a hand absentmindedly. Yuuri sucked in a breath and steeled himself. </p><p>“Why is your domain here?” Yuuri blurted out. “Most gods have their domains on Olympus, even Demeter. But you’re here, constantly, and you don’t even have a palace here.”</p><p><a id="return8" name="return8"></a>Viktor was frozen for a moment, then his back went rigid. Yuuri hazarded a glance down to the grass. Chrysanthemums<sup>[<a href="#note8">8</a>]</sup> were sprouting up from the ground, surrounding them.</p><p>“I could ask you the same thing, Yuuri,” Viktor said, finally. “You have a spot on the pantheon. Why do you only spend your time in the Underworld?”</p><p>Yuuri supposed it was a fair question. He shrugged. “I don’t… I don’t really fit in, you know. I’m not really an Olympian, I haven’t been in a long time. They all work for such important things, for the mortal world. I just represent the end of everything they work so hard for. Everyone’s nice, sure, but it just feels weird, like I don’t belong.”</p><p>Viktor’s face was pained. “Yuuri, that is not true,” he murmured. “Death is an unfortunate part of mortal life, yes, but it is also a necessary part. Without the end of life, there’s nothing precious about everything before it.”</p><p>Yuuri was astounded at the younger god’s wisdom, but his heart warmed at his words. “Thank you," he whispered. "Really, thank you, Viktor.”</p><p>“You should go back,” Viktor told him, smiling a bit now. “And reclaim your throne.”</p><p>Yuuri blinked. “It’s still there?” He couldn’t stop the disbelief from coloring his tone.</p><p>“Of course,” Viktor assured him. “Why wouldn’t it be?”</p><p>Yuuri shuffled his feet and stared at the ground, feeling sheepish. “I haven’t attended a pantheon meeting in centuries,” he explained, a little embarrassed. “It felt like I had nothing to contribute, and the mortals started multiplying so quickly and dying just as fast, so I stopped going eventually.”</p><p>“Well, as soon as you escape,” Viktor teased, “you should start attending more meetings.”</p><p>“I don’t think they would accept my presence now,” Yuuri said, averting his eyes. “It’s been too long.”</p><p>“They could use your input, I think. A fresh pair of eyes might do those stuffy, old gods some good,” Viktor said, with a surprising amount of bitterness in his voice.</p><p>Yuuri looked up, peering at Viktor over his glasses. “Viktor?” he asked, softly. “You didn’t answer my question before. Why the mortal world? Why not stay on Olympus?</p><p>Viktor exhaled deeply, looking out into the distance as the wind blew his hair out of his face. There was a long pause before he finally answered.</p><p>“Well,” he said, drawing out his words slowly, “For one thing, I like the mortal world. I like Earth. I like mortals, with their new ideas and clothing and foods. I like the plants- I simply wouldn’t have the space for it if I had a palace on Olympus with all the other stuffy gods.” He was smiling throughout the explanation, sounding far more cheerful than Yuuri thought he actually was. </p><p>“That’s not the only reason, is it?” Yuuri asked, quietly. </p><p>The smile disappeared. Yuuri wondered if he had pushed too much, but Viktor sighed. He brushed a hand through his hair. </p><p>“Perceptive, aren’t you?”</p><p>“It’s sort of my job,” Yuuri said, with a teasing smile. “They don’t call me the Judge of Souls for nothing, you know.” He nudged him a bit, earning a wry smile from the other god. It faded quickly, and Viktor was quiet for a moment.</p><p>“No one takes me seriously on Olympus,” Viktor said, finally.</p><p>“What?” Yuuri asked, incredulous. “You? You’re the King of Nature. You’re the foundation of the mortal world.”</p><p>“I know,” Viktor agonized in frustration. “But, you have to understand that most of the other gods are much, much older than me. They are Olympians, after all. They are stuck in their old ways, very traditional. Mortals are so much younger, comparatively, always so innovative and far more willing to accept change. Yakov and Lilia took me under their wing, and I am so grateful for them, but it made the other gods treat me like a child, even long after I have passed such a stage.”</p><p>“That’s awful,” Yuuri murmured, reaching out to touch his arm. </p><p>“When I was younger,” Viktor added, suddenly, “I would sit at Yakov’s feet in the throne room, while they discussed big, important things. And I wanted to be a part of it, I wanted to help. I was young, and foolish, and I thought that eventually, when I grew bigger, older, more powerful, I would get a throne on Olympus.”</p><p>“Oh, Viktor...”</p><p><a id="return9" name="return9"></a>“I know, I did not understand as a child, of course. Eventually I realized that if I stayed, I would never grow. So I left for the mortal world, and built my own domain here.” Viktor gestured to the rest of his garden; fields of different flowers, plots full of bountiful crops, acres of luscious green vegetation, and an orchard abundant with trees bearing ripe and delicious fruit. “Though, at the cost of my friends and family. Yakov and I hardly speak anymore, and I only see Lilia during Annual Banquets. They divorced a year after I left.” He looked away at this, gazing out at the sea of multicolored flowers. The pink chrysanthemums were being replaced by lilies<sup>[<a href="#note9">9</a>]</sup>.</p><p>Yuuri’s heart thudded in his chest. </p><p>“I think you made the right call,” he found himself saying. “You weren’t happy on Olympus. And you built this beautiful place- they should be happy for you, proud of you.” He hesitated, before deciding to finish it with, "<em>I'm<em> proud of you."</em></em></p><p><a id="return10" name="return10"></a>Viktor was suddenly looking at him with a deep intensity. Then, “Thank you, Yuuri,” he said, quietly. Pink roses<sup>[<a href="#note10">10</a>]</sup> began to bloom around them.</p><p>Yuuri smiled hesitantly back. “You’re welcome, Viktor.” Then, “And thank <em> you </em>, too.”</p><hr/><p>It took embarrassingly long for the other gods to notice something’s wrong. In their defense, it wasn’t like Yuuri ever put in the effort to keep in extended contact with anyone who didn’t semi-permanently live in the Underworld, and it would appear the Furies and Phichit were keeping everything in order if the mortal world hadn’t fallen into chaos. So, Viktor and Yuuri remained in the gardens for quite a few months alone, a time that Yuuri truly cherished. He’d long accepted that Viktor wouldn’t become bored of him, and they settled into an easy rhythm, uninterrupted by the outside world.</p><p>Which is why Yuuri was surprised when they were paid a visit by the God of the Harvest himself, after the turn of the new year.</p><p>“Viktor.”</p><p>Yuuri looked up from where he was squatting, at the base of the arch. He had been picking some grapes from the vines twisting around the wooden arch. It was mid-afternoon, and the sun was shining down, brilliant and unforgiving. Yuuri was wearing one of Viktor’s tunics, a much lighter and thinner fabric than his own clothing in order to combat the naturally warm climate of Viktor’s garden. He usually wore dark, heavy robes to counteract the naturally cold Underworld. Viktor, on the other hand, seemed to have a variety of clothing, both formal and casual, godly and mortal.</p><p>“Hello, Yakov,” Viktor said, cheerfully. “How are you?”</p><p>“Viktor,” the gruff god said, exasperation clear in his tone. “What do you think you’re doing?”</p><p>“Hmm?” Viktor, crossed an arm over his chest, tapping his chin thoughtfully. “Well, we’re about to make some wine, then water the sunflowers, if you’d like to join us.”</p><p>“Vitya,” Yakov said, sharply. “You must let Lord Hades go.”</p><p><a id="return11" name="return11"></a>Yuuri stood up slowly, his hands trembling a little bit. The smile did not leave Viktor’s face, but something about it had turned darker. He spared a look down, to find bright yellow tansies<sup>[<a href="#note11">11</a>]</sup> spouting beneath Viktor’s bare feet.</p><p>“I don’t think so,” Viktor said, pleasantly. “He is my prisoner, after all.”</p><p>“<em>Vitya</em>,” Yakov emphasized. </p><p>“<em>Yakov</em>,” Viktor mimicked his tone. “You have been like a father to me, Yakov. But even you cannot come into my domain and make demands.”</p><p>There was a hint of something in his tone, there, and it sent a thrill up Yuuri’s spine. The tansies continued to blossom rather eerily.</p><p>“He is the God of the <em>Underworld</em>,” Yakov grit out, “and he has been away from <em>his</em> domain for long enough. It will throw the world out of balance.”</p><p>“Sounds like a <em>you</em> problem,” Viktor told him, smile still not leaving his face. </p><p>“Viktor!” Frustratedly, Yakov made to move toward Yuuri, and Viktor snapped his fingers. Roots sprouted from the ground, curling tightly at Yakov’s ankles.</p><p>“Come on, Yuuri, we should harvest some corn and make popcorn as well!” Viktor beamed.</p><p>“I’m not eating anything you make me,” Yuuri said, instinctively. He was staying here out of his own free will, sure, but that didn’t mean he could afford to be <em>stuck</em> here forever.</p><p>“I meant that I will <em>show</em> you how to make it, sheesh.”</p><p>Yuuri couldn’t help but let out a groan. “I hate corn,” he grumbled, and Viktor knew this well. If there was a plant that Viktor had more of an abundance of than apple trees, it was corn.</p><p>“You’ll like popcorn, darling,” Viktor promised, pulling at his arm insistently.</p><p>Yuuri placed the bunches of grapes he had just picked into the basket and waved awkwardly at the God of the Harvest rooted in the ground, gritting his teeth and silently seething.</p><p>“Err, thanks for trying, Lord Demeter,” he said, uncomfortably. Then, he quickly followed Viktor toward the vegetable garden.</p><hr/><p>It was clear that the Olympians were either too cowed by confronting Viktor in his own domain, or couldn’t be bothered to help Yuuri, because it took several days for the next god to show up. </p><p>Though, Yuuri thought, if Yakov couldn’t talk some sense into Viktor, he couldn’t imagine anyone else having any better luck.</p><p>The next god to try was Yurio.</p><p>He was a young god, even more so than Viktor. He was fiery and passionate and lacking any sense of restraint or tact, like his youth would suggest. His position as the God of War probably wasn’t doing him any favors in the temper department, either.</p><p>Yuuri hadn’t actually met the war god before, but had seen (or, rather, heard) him at the Annual Banquet, before he had gotten completely black-out drunk and had to be driven home by Michele via the moon chariot. Michele, Yuuko had informed him cheerfully the next morning, had not appreciated having the role of designated charioteer thrust upon him. </p><p>Despite never having met him properly, Yuuri somehow got the sense that the young war god hated him.</p><p>“Viktor, just what do you think you’re doing with the likes of <em>Hades</em>?” Yurio spat out. It was the first thing he said upon entering Viktor’s domain and finding the pair in the garden.</p><p>Today, Yuuri and Viktor were sitting at the edge of the wooden bridge, legs dangling off the edge while overlooking the pond. Viktor was making the water lilies spin like tops, causing the frogs to croak loudly and jump from lily pad to lily pad. Yuuri, meanwhile, was tossing handfuls of seeds to the mama duck and her seven baby ducklings, who would chip in delight and gobble them up. Vicchan was eyeing the fish with curiosity, but he knew better than to mess with them, for fear of Yuuri’s ire and Viktor’s disappointment.</p><p>“Yurio!” Viktor cried, delighted. He swung his legs away from the water to face the irate God of War. “To what do I owe this pleasure?”</p><p>Yurio sputtered. “You know just why I’m here, Viktor.” He jabbed a finger in Viktor’s chest, but he seemed unfazed by the younger god’s actions. “You need to kick out the stupid God of Death.”</p><p>“I’m actually the God of <em>the Dead</em>,” Yuuri corrected, not for the first time. “<em>Death</em> is Phichit’s job. I’m just management.”</p><p>“Whatever,” Yurio grunted. “Yakov sent me to put your head on straight again. So come on, Viktor, enough playing with some stupid minor god.”</p><p>“Minor god?” Yuuri repeated mildly. He would be offended, if not for Yurio’s youth; it was hard to be offended by the tiny god, however powerful, when he looked like an annoyed kitten.</p><p>“Minor god?” Viktor also repeated, with more heat than Yuuri had.</p><p>“Viktor,” Yuuri admonished at his tone. Viktor blinked a couple times, then turned his head and scowled. He wrapped an arm around Yuuri’s waist, and he let him.</p><p>“Yurio, right?” Yuuri then turned to him with a smile. “How about you stay for dinner?”</p><p>Yurio’s eyes widened. “Don’t tell me you ate anything he gave you!” he practically shouted, looking horrified. “Even Lilia can’t help you if you did! You’d be even stupider than you look!”</p><p>“No of course not,” Yuuri soothed him. He wasn’t an idiot; he really didn’t feel like being trapped in Persephone’s garden for all of eternity. He knew better than to eat anything raw from Viktor’s garden, or anything that Yuuri himself had not prepared. “Everything I eat I cook for myself.”</p><p>Yurio huffed, while Viktor pouted.</p><p>“Unfortunately,” Viktor added, with a sigh.</p><p>“You say that like you’re complaining about my cooking,” Yuuri said, narrowing his eyes. Viktor straightened immediately.</p><p>“Of course not!” he said, hastily. </p><p>“We’re taking a leaf out of Yakov’s book,” Yuuri explained, “and trying to harvest some rice to make some new recipes.” He pointed in the distance, where they could make out the new addition of several terraces of rice paddies, cut into the earth, that did not exist before Yuuri’s presence in the garden.</p><p>Viktor sighed dreamily. “Yuuri is an amazing cook,” he added. “You should try it.”</p><p>Eventually, they convinced the God of War to agree to dinner, easily distracting him with Yuuri’s home-made katsudon, and sent him back to Olympus with a doggy bag.</p><hr/><p>Over the course of the next several weeks, the other gods also tried their hand at convincing Viktor to let Yuuri go, clearly relieved that Yurio, the most hot-headed and rude, had left the garden without so much as a mark on him. Nonetheless, Viktor remained resolute at keeping Yuuri prisoner, growing increasingly annoyed with the appearance of each god. Yuuri, personally, didn’t quite mind the visitors. He usually despised talking to the other gods, but it was a little easier with their attentions focused almost solely on Viktor. Besides, hardly anyone acknowledged Yuuri himself, far too preoccupied with trying to yell at Viktor or incapacitate him in his own domain. Needless to say, neither worked.</p><p>Eventually, a couple weeks passed without any visitors. With the exception of Yurio, who would visit every week demanding Yuuri’s cooking. </p><p>Yakov had been right about one thing; Viktor had been shirking his duties, as God of Nature. Yuuri insisted that Viktor start doing his job and start tending to the mortal world, like he had been neglecting to do the past few months. </p><p>This meant, of course, that Viktor would leave the gardens everyday from noon until dusk. So, Yuuri and Viktor settled into a new routine. When Viktor was home, they would often spend their time tending to the plants, harvesting fruits or vegetables when Yuuri was in the mood to experiment with a new recipe, and adding to Yuuri’s ever growing garden. It was as large as Viktor’s sunflower patch, now, with blooming nightshade plants, asphodel flowers, and death bells, which was quickly becoming one of Viktor’s favorites. While Viktor was off fulfilling duties in the mortal world, Yuuri took to reading the book Seung-gil had dropped off for him, the second time he had visited. </p><p>“Here,” the God of Wisdom had grunted, shoving the book into his hands. “I know I can’t convince Viktor to let you go, even if Yakov thinks I can. I figured this would be useful to you.”</p><p>Viktor had been several yards away, standing ramrod straight in the field as several birds landed on him. “Yuuri!” he shouted excitedly, his back on Yuuri and Seung-gil. “Quick! Come look at the birds!” It was clear he had not seen Seung-gil.</p><p>“Thank you,” Yuuri had said, sincerely. It was a surprisingly thoughtful gift, one that had taken Yuuri by surprise. He and Seung-gil had always gotten along fine, united only by the other god’s interest in Vicchan and Yuuri’s delight at seeing Seung-gil’s husky. He had wondered what had prompted the usually self-interested god to think of such a thing, but he had disappeared from the garden before Yuuri could ask.</p><p>Yuuri had read through <em>The Language of Flowers</em> by Victoria Otto more times than he could count, dedicating each meaning to heart carefully. Viktor didn’t comment on the book, so Yuuri never mentioned the fact that he started noticing a correlation between his apparent moods, and the flowers that would bloom under his feet.</p><p><a id="return12" name="return12"></a>Viktor was someone who wore his heart on his sleeve, so it wasn’t difficult to start noticing that when he started playing with Vicchan, sunflowers<sup>[<a href="#note12">12</a>]</sup> began to grow from the ground. Or, when his smiles grew cold and fake during visits from other gods trying to convince Viktor to let Yuuri go, resulting in a field full of yellow carnations<sup>[<a href="#note13">13</a>]</sup>.</p><p>When Viktor returned to the gardens from his daily duties in the mortal world, they would spend the evenings cooking together and watching Sara’s sun chariot disappear. Then, they would watch the nocturnal flowers bloom under the moonlight, catch fireflies, or curl up on a soft patch of grass until they drifted off to sleep. Yuuri loathed to admit he was perhaps growing a little <em>too</em> comfortable, but he’d really never felt so relaxed in his life. He had spent so long cooped up in the Underworld, emerging only to retrieve souls, that he had forgotten that it was a necessary evil to ensure the value and beauty in life.</p><p>Of course, their peace could not last forever.</p><p>“<em>Mon ami!</em>”</p><p>Today was Christophe’s turn, it would seem.</p><p>Chris was smiling, the sun shining and making his blonde hair look like a halo sitting upon his head. The God of Love always looked good, but his presence in Viktor’s domain seemed to make him appear angelic.</p><p>“Ah, Chris!” Viktor’s face brightened. He was kneeling in the soil, helping Yuuri plant some of the nightshade plants he had insisted on introducing to his garden. Yuuri was surprised Viktor had taken his request seriously, going so far as to set aside a plot of land for Yuuri, right next to the pomegranate sapling.</p><p>“It’s good to see you,” Chris told him, smiling as always. “You as well, Yuuri.” He winked.</p><p>Yuuri returned the greeting a bit awkwardly, as Viktor’s smile tightened. </p><p>“Chris,” he greeted, his voice a little colder than usual. “What brings you here?”</p><p>“Business, I’m afraid.” Chris’s shoulders slumped, and his smile fell a bit. “Viktor…”</p><p>Viktor stood up, casually brushing off the dirt from his hands. “I take it Yakov <em> still </em> has not accepted my answer?”</p><p>Chris looked grim. “You know him better than I do,” he said. “What do you think?”</p><p>“So he’s just going to keep sending other gods in his stead?” Viktor scoffed. “To try to convince me?”</p><p>“Probably.” Chris shrugged. “I figured I wouldn’t be able to convince you, anyways. How about a tour, then? Make sure you’re taking good care of Yuuri at least.”</p><p>Viktor relaxed a bit, his face brightening. “Oh! You haven’t visited me in so long- let me show you the roses, I know they’re your favorite.”</p><p>Yuuri followed the two friends as they talked about gossip that Viktor had missed out on Olympus.</p><p>“Emil is still trying.” Chris sighed, dramatically. “I’ve been helping him, but Michele just can’t seem to take a hint!”</p><p>“Well, he is quite oblivious,” Viktor agreed. “He is so preoccupied with scaring men off from Sara, he can’t even tell that some of those men are <em> his </em> suitors.”</p><p>“Emil was actually the one who noticed Yuuri was missing,” Chris added, suddenly. Then, he saw the surprise on both Viktor and Yuuri’s faces, and elaborated. “He went down to the Underworld to deliver a message for Yuuri, but found Phichit instead, who finally thought to mention that the King of the Underworld has been MIA for months now. Apparently, he didn’t seem that concerned.”</p><p>Yuuri couldn’t help but laugh a little, if only to alleviate some of the guilt in his chest. It was reassuring to hear Phichit wasn’t worried, trusting that Yuuri could handle himself. Still, he felt a bit bad for the sudden vacation, leaving his most trusted friend with all of his work.</p><p>“It took them quite a while to notice,” Viktor said, his voice low. There was a note of danger in his tone.</p><p>“I’m not surprised,” Yuuri said, shrugging. “It’s not like I talk to any of the other gods, really.”</p><p>“It took them <em>months</em> to notice you were missing,” Viktor emphasized, angrily, as if he weren’t the one to blame for Yuuri missing in the first place. Yuuri placed a hand on his shoulder soothingly.</p><p>“It’s not that big a deal,” he said, uncomfortable and confused by Viktor’s annoyance. “I’m surprised they even did, to be honest.” Even though Emil did take regular trips down to Yuuri’s domain, and he interacted with Mila and Georgi on a fairly regular basis given their constant presence at the entrance of the Underworld, it didn't mean that word would have traveled to the pantheon any faster. </p><p>That didn’t seem to placate Viktor in the slightest. He opened his mouth to respond, but Chris cut him off.</p><p>“Viktor,” he cut in, smoothly. “Do you have that perfume bottle I lent you, last year?”</p><p>“Oh!” Viktor blinked. “Yes, I think so, it should be lying around here somewhere. Let me find it…” He glanced at Yuuri, hesitantly, who waved him off.</p><p><a id="return14" name="return14"></a>“I’ll be fine, here,” he promised. Viktor nodded and disappeared in a flurry of pink petals. The spot he had been standing in was overtaken by a patch of multi colored zinnias<sup>[<a href="#note14">14</a>]</sup>. Yuuri only took a couple moments to process the meaning, and found himself rolling his eyes.</p><p>"What a drama queen." Yuuri laughed a little to himself and shook his head in fond exasperation.</p><p>Yuuri then looked back at Chris, who lookin at him with a curious expression on his face. He seemed contemplative, like he wasn’t sure what exactly he wanted to say.</p><p>“Are you okay?” he finally settled on asking. </p><p>Yuuri shrugged. “Yeah,” he said. “I’m fine, really, Chris. Thanks for asking,” he added, genuinely touched. Yakov and all the other gods had been far more concerned about yelling at Viktor, but Chris seemed more worried about Yuuri himself, which he appreciated.</p><p>“You could escape, now,” Chris said. “While he’s distracted.”</p><p>Yuuri hesitated. “I-“ He shook his head. “Not likely. His wards always seemed to catch me when I tried to escape,” he lied, terribly.</p><p>Chris gave him a flat look. “Yuuri,” he said. “I may not be Seung-gil, here, but I’m not an idiot. I’ve known Viktor for a long time; his warding is good, but not good enough to hold one of the Big Three.”</p><p>Yuuri flushed at being called out so blatantly. He wondered how no other god had wondered how Viktor had been powerful enough to contain him, though, perhaps that had contributed to their hesitation in wanting to confront him. Chris, however, had always made it his business to know everything about everyone, so it didn’t surprise Yuuri too much that he could see right through him.</p><p>“I, um,” Yuuri said, sheepishly, “may have wanted a vacation, and now I don’t know how to leave without hurting his feelings.”</p><p>Chris stared. “You what?”</p><p>“Well,” Yuuri floundered, “he just seemed so proud of his wards, that he had such power in his own domain. And you know how proud he is of his gardens- I didn’t want to make it seem like I could break out so easily.”</p><p>“You <em>can</em> break out easily,” Chris deadpanned.</p><p>Yuuri shifted a bit. “Well, yes, I can, but that’s not the point. Besides, I really do like it here.”</p><p>Despite the admission, Chris still seemed wary.</p><p>“Are you sure? Is this Stockholm Syndrome?” Chris’s eyes widened. “If he really did kidnap you, blink twice.”</p><p>Yuuri laughed, shoving Chris lightly. “No, Chris, really. I’m good, I promise.”</p><p>“Okay," Chris said, with a small chuckle. The tension eased out of his shoulders, but he added, "but just know you can tell me if anything’s wrong. Even if you are just enjoying your stay here, Viktor can be… a bit much.”</p><p>Yuuri snorted a bit, and Chris laughed as well, because, <em>yeah</em>, that was an understatement.</p><p>“I’m good, actually, more than good,” Yuuri assured him again. “Viktor couldn’t hurt a fly, really. He’s… I really like spending time with him.” His voice softened a bit, and Chris’s eyes went wide.</p><p>“You don’t want to leave,” he realized. “And I don’t mean just because you’re enjoying a vacation in his beautiful garden. You don’t want to leave <em> him</em>.”</p><p>Yuuri flushed; it was something he had privately acknowledged to himself, but it was different hearing it aloud from another person. </p><p>“I-“ he tried to protest, but the argument died on his lips before the lie could be (poorly) told.</p><p>“I like it here,” Yuuri finally admitted, his voice small. “It’s- it’s nice, to be surrounded by life, instead of constant death. Viktor is sweet, and- and he loves this place, and he talks to me. He’s just so full of life, and love, I can feel it. I don’t want to “escape” yet; this is my only chance to be this close to Viktor. He’ll probably forget about me when I finally leave, anyways.”</p><p>Chris was smiling, but it looked a little sad. “Oh, <em>cherie</em>,” he cooed. “He wouldn’t- I mean, you’re-“</p><p>“I’ve got it!” Viktor was running toward them, beaming and waving a glass jar at them. “Thanks for the potion, by the way. You were right- the narcissus flowers just needed some extra TLC.”</p><p>Chris accepted the jar, breaking eye contact with Yuuri to wink at the God of Nature. “Of course. When am I ever wrong in matters of love?”</p><p>“Well, there was that time with the nymph-“ Viktor began, a mischievous twinkle in his eye.</p><p>“No!” Chris suddenly yelped, face flooding with embarrassment, an expression Yuuri had never seen on the usually shameless god. “You promised not to-“</p><p>But Viktor was laughing, eyes bright with mirth. Yuuri couldn’t help but smile at the sight, gazing at his warm expression with a familiar tightening in his chest. It was only when Chris nudged him that he realized he was staring, probably like the besotted idiot that he was.</p><p>Viktor continued his tour of the gardens, until the sky had turned deep blue, fading into burnt orange as the sun passed the horizon line.</p><p>“Well, it was nice to see you both,” Chris said, pulling Viktor into a tight embrace. When they broke apart, he reached for Yuuri as well, and he reluctantly accepted the brief hug. He felt Chris slip something into his tunic, and heard him whisper, “If you ever need me.”</p><p>Then, Chris was pulling away with a bright smile. He disappeared, leaving only the scent of sweet perfume in his stead.</p><p><a id="return15" name="return15"></a>“C’mon, darling,” Viktor purred, reaching for Yuuri’s hand. “Let’s go watch the night gladiolus<sup>[<a href="#note15">15</a>]</sup> bloom near the brook.”</p><p>Like every time Viktor called him some pet name, Yuuri blushed. Nonetheless, Yuuri accepted the hand, heart hammering in his chest. “Okay,” he agreed, readily. </p><p><a id="return16" name="return16"></a>Later, when Viktor was snoozing in a patch of red poppies<sup>[<a href="#note16">16</a>]</sup>, looking peaceful and angelic in his slumber, Yuuri reached into his tunic and found a small shell, a little smaller than the palm of his hand. His mouth felt dry, and his chest tight.</p><p>It would be so easy, he realized. Viktor, who slept like a log (not like the dead, no, Yuuri could attest to that), softly snoring mere feet away from him, and Yuuri, with the perfect tool to return home without offending Viktor. Yuuri’s domain needed him; he had responsibilities as God of the Underworld. Sure, it seemed that Phichit had everything in order, but who was holding court? Who was reviewing the appeals? Yuuri should leave right now, before something bad <em>did</em> happen. </p><p>Still, the thought of leaving, never to return here, to Viktor, left his heart aching.</p><p>Vicchan slept soundly, curled into Viktor’s chest. </p><p>Well, Yuuri then thought, he couldn’t leave now. Not without Vicchan, of course. And he couldn’t risk waking up Viktor in the process of retrieving his precious guard dog.</p><p>Next time, Yuuri decided, reaching into the soil next to the stream. He dug a small hole, burying the seashell and marking the spot with a smooth stone. When Viktor fell asleep next time, he and Vicchan would make their escape.</p><hr/><p>As all things were, this was easier said than done. </p><p>Yuuri soon found himself at an impasse. Every time Viktor fell asleep, Yuuri would dig up the tiny shell, hold it in his hands, and come up with some poor excuse to not leave. </p><p>First, it was, <em>Oh, he looks like he’s sleeping lightly tonight, I wouldn’t want to accidentally wake him, that would be incredibly rude</em>. </p><p>Then, it was, <em>I’m awfully tired as well, and I won’t be able to get back to work if I’m not fully rested</em>. </p><p>That turned into <em>the stars don’t look aligned correctly, I’m sure the Fates are warning me today’s not my day.</em></p><p>And every time, Yuuri would rebury the shell, curl up next to Viktor, and tell himself he would try again next time. Eventually, Yuuri just had to face the facts: he didn’t want to leave.</p><p>Frustrated, Yuuri dropped the shell on the ground next to him and flopped onto his back. This woke Vicchan, who trotted next to him and dropped his heads onto Yuuri’s stomach.</p><p>“I think I’m going crazy, Vicchan,” he whispered, rubbing one of his heads. Why wouldn’t he want to leave? Yuuri wondered. Viktor had technically kidnapped him, after all, and was trying to keep him prisoner in his garden for the unforeseeable future. However fond of Viktor Yuuri was, he knew it would hurt far more when the god inevitably got bored and discarded Yuuri like weeding out his patch of vegetables.</p><p>
  <em>Still…</em>
</p><p><a id="return17" name="return17"></a>Yuuri turned his neck to the side, to watch Viktor sleeping peacefully beside him. His long, dainty eyelashes fluttered a bit in his sleep, sitting delicately upon his sharp cheekbones. He must have been having a good dream, judging by the yellow tulips<sup>[<a href="#note17">17</a>]</sup> surrounding his sleeping form like a bedding made of gold.</p><p>…Yuuri wanted to keep this, whatever they had together. So, he decided. He would stay, for as long as Viktor would have him, even if it broke his heart when it ended.</p><p>Yuuri closed his eyes, letting Viktor’s presence lull him to sleep.</p><hr/><p>“Yuuri?”</p><p>He was awakened by the shaky sound of Viktor’s voice.</p><p>“Hng,” Yuuri responded, intelligently. He curled further into a ball, not wanting to wake up yet.</p><p>There was a brief moment of silence, then-</p><p>“Yuuri!”</p><p>He groaned, sitting up slowly. Yuuri rubbed the sleep out of his eyes; Viktor had really gotten him into the habit of sleeping. </p><p>“What is it-“ Yuuri froze. Viktor was sitting across from him, a heartbroken expression on his face. In his hands was the small shell he had forgotten to rebury last night.</p><p>“Viktor, I don’t-“</p><p>“Don’t,” Viktor said, lip trembling a bit.  “I can sense Chris’s magic in it. Don’t lie to me, please.”</p><p><a id="return18" name="return18"></a>“I wasn’t going to use it,” Yuuri said, helplessly looking around at the daffodils<sup>[<a href="#note18">18</a>]</sup> sprouting around them. It made him more panicked, and the lump in his throat to grow even bigger.</p><p>“Why- I don’t understand,” Viktor sniffled. “Don’t you like it here? I tried to make it like your home, I’m sorry if it's not the same.”</p><p>Yuuri scrambled to him, taking the shell and tossing it carelessly behind him in favor of clutching Viktor’s hands. Vicchan whined at the sudden movement, but settled down upon seeing the two. He was a smart dog; he knew this was not the time to play.</p><p>Viktor’s eyes were welling up with tears, and Yuuri hated the expression so much.</p><p>“I do like it here,” Yuuri told him, honestly. “I’ve- I’ve thought about using it, yeah. But Chris gave it to me when he visited us, and I just… I just couldn’t bring myself to use it.”</p><p>“But-” Viktor started, then bit his lip. He continued, “You’re a prisoner here,” he murmured. “Why wouldn’t you leave the first chance you got?”</p><p>Right, that. Yuuri must have looked as sheepish as he felt, because Viktor was suddenly narrowing his eyes at him.</p><p>“Yuuri…” he trailed off, a warning in his tone. Yuuri shuddered a bit at the sound of his name coming from Viktor’s lips.</p><p>“Promise you won’t be mad?”</p><p><a id="return19" name="return19"></a>Viktor gave him a pointed look, but relented. “I won’t get mad,” he agreed, grudgingly. A nightshade<sup>[<a href="#note19">19</a>]</sup> sprouted up next to him, so Yuuri took the promise at face value.</p><p>Yuuri reached out and closed his eyes. He could feel Viktor’s magic surrounding the garden, his wards standing strong and preventing him from leaving. He could feel Viktor’s attention, and knew he could feel Yuuri’s magic as well. Then, with a twist of his wrist, he sent the wards crumbling.</p><p>He heard Viktor inhale, sharply. Yuuri opened his eyes, hesitantly, to see Viktor’s mouth agape and his eyes as wide as saucers.</p><p>“Are you mad?” Yuuri asked, in a small voice.</p><p>“All this time?” Viktor breathed, looking more astounded than angry. “You could have left this entire time?”</p><p>Yuuri rubbed the back of his neck. This seemed like enough confirmation for Viktor, because his head dropped into his hands.</p><p>“Yes, but...” Yuuri hesitated. “I didn’t want to.”</p><p>Viktor’s head snapped up to look at Yuuri. “You mean…” he trailed off, like he was too afraid to finish.</p><p>Yuuri reached out for his hands, and squeezed them like he was afraid of letting go. “I want to stay here,” he admitted, the confession leaving his chest lighter than it had ever before. “I want to stay with you, as long as you’ll have me.”</p><p>Viktor’s eyes were shining with tears still, but this time he was beaming. Suddenly, Yuuri was on his back, the grass tickling his exposed skin, and Viktor was suddenly above him, kissing him deeply. Yuuri slung his arms around the other god’s neck, pulling him closer and holding on tightly. </p><p><a id="return20" name="return20"></a>Finally they broke apart, smiling widely and giggling to themselves. Vicchan took the time to jump between them, one head licking each face and the third head barking happily. Viktor entwined their fingers together, pulling Yuuri’s hand up to kiss the back of his hand. Surrounding them was a field full of ambrosias<sup>[<a href="#note20">20</a>]</sup>.</p><p><em>Did that mean- </em>Yuuri could hardly bear to think it, his heart hammering so loudly he thought Olympus could hear.</p><p>As if reading his mind, Viktor’s gaze went from pure joy to soft and fond. “I love you,” Viktor confessed, and Yuuri’s heart ached for more.</p><p>“I love you too,” Yuuri said, breathlessly, pulling Viktor back down for a kiss, the shell lying in the grass, forgotten and buried under the growing ambrosias.</p><hr/><p>Their daily routine didn’t change much afterwards. The only difference being that Viktor seemed more invigorated than ever to fulfill his daily duties, often returning to the gardens after only a few hours of work. Yuuri was pleased with this change, and, with Viktor’s newfound free time, he found himself spending their days watering the flowers, trimming the ever growing hedges, and feeding the fish in the pond and the wild squirrels that approached them cautiously (as well as Yurio, who still visited every week, demanding Yuuri’s cooking). They spent the next few months enjoying their day-to-day routine, along with the introduction of handholding, of brushes of the hand when he passed the watering can, of wrapping arms around the waist while cooking, of chaste kisses while watching the sunset every night. </p><p>Yuuri couldn’t remember a time he had ever felt as content as he did now. So, he knew what needed to be done.</p><p>He waited for Viktor to fall asleep one night, Vicchan curled at Viktor’s side and his silver hair fanned out on the soft grass like a silver halo. Yuuri also <em> may </em> have put some poppies in Viktor’s dinner, to ensure that the god wouldn’t awaken in the middle of the night. Once he was sure that Viktor was deeply in slumber, Yuuri dug for the shell that he had re-buried weeks ago, left untouched since the day they had first kissed. Pressing it to his palm, he looked back at Viktor’s slumbering face one more time. Unable to help himself, he leaned down and kissed his forehead, then snapped the seashell in half. Instantly, he was transported to Olympus. More specifically, to Chris’s palace.</p><p>“Yuuri,” Chris gasped, standing up immediately from where he was reclining in the courtyard. “Are you okay?”</p><p>“I’m fine,” Yuuri assured him. “Thanks for the shell, by the way. I was afraid taking down the wards would have woken him up.”</p><p>“You left while he was sleeping?”</p><p>“I just, uh, I needed some advice.” Yuuri rubbed the back of his neck, smiling sheepishly.</p><p>Chris’s eyebrows shot up. “Advice?”</p><p>Yuuri recounted the past few weeks, starting with the kiss and ending with why he was there.</p><p>“I just, I want to give him something special, you know?” Yuuri finished, lamely. “It’s been a few months since we first kissed, and I still don’t actually know what to get him. He’s got everything he could want in his own domain. Flowers, trees, crops-“</p><p>“You,” Chris added, dryly.</p><p>Yuuri shot him a dirty look, ignoring the flush on his cheeks. “There’s nothing I could give him that he doesn’t already have,” he finally said, with a sigh.</p><p>“Ridiculous,” Chris declared. “Viktor is a god who is never satisfied, after all. Yes, he has everything he could give himself. But a gift to him should be something only <em> you </em> could give him.”</p><p>“Me?” Yuuri said, doubtfully. “I’m the God of the Dead, Chris. Lord of Darkness. King of the Underworld. Where exactly do you see <em> romantic sentiment </em> in those titles?”</p><p>Chris clicked his tongue in disapproval. “Tooting your own horn a little, aren’t we?” he teased.</p><p>“Chris,” Yuuri said, exasperated. Chris laughed a little, but obliged him. He leaned in, a mischievous smirk growing on his face. </p><p>“Oh, ye of little face,” he said, airily. “You forget your own abilities, sometimes, <em> mon cherie</em>. Are you not the God of Wealth as well?”</p><p>Yuuri sputtered. “I don’t want to just- just buy him something!” he protested. “Doesn’t that seem, I don’t know, superficial?”</p><p>Chris raised an eyebrow. “So make him something.”</p><p>“What could I possibly-” Yuuri stopped, his mind racing all of a sudden. Then, he knelt down, placing his hands on the ground. The dirt suddenly melted away, easing the way for a gold bar to be pulled out from the ground.</p><p>“Chris,” Yuuri breathed, “you’re a genius.”</p><p>“I am,” Chris agreed, eyeing the bar of gold. “Can you just, uh, can you just <em> do </em> that? On a whim?"</p><p>Yuuri looked back up and shrugged. “Yeah,” he said. “Not like it’s any use.”</p><p><em>Not like it’s any use,</em> Chris mouthed the last few words of Yuuri’s sentence, looking a little incredulous. Then, he sighed a bit dramatically.</p><p>“And to think, I missed out on the perfect chance to have a sugar daddy,” Chris said, making Yuuri flush and sputter. “Viktor is a lucky man,” he added, mournfully.</p><p>“Chris!” Yuuri cried out, feeling his ears grow warm in embarrassment.</p><p>The God of Love chuckled. “Yes, well, shouldn’t you be going back? It’s past sunrise.”</p><p>Yuuri looked at the sky and could make out Sara’s chariot rising above the horizon. His eyes widened.</p><p>“Oh no!” he yelped, panicked. Yuuri thrust the gold bar out to Chris, who looked at it with surprise.</p><p>“Huh?” he asked, dumbly.</p><p>“I want to use a gold bar from the garden,” Yuuri told him, impatiently. “Now take it!”</p><p>Chris, thankfully, didn’t seem to need any more excuses. He accepted the gold bar, and Yuuri gave him one last quick thanks before sinking into the ground to return to the garden. Yuuri looked around, once he rose out of the grassy meadow in Viktor’s garden. He had returned to the same place he had left, but there was no sign of Viktor.</p><p>“Viktor?” he called out.</p><p>For a long, scary moment was only the sound of the wind. Then, Yuuri turned toward the direction of the rest of the garden. Viktor was several yards away, running toward him. Every step left a small patch of brightly colored flowers that Yuuri couldn’t quite make out.</p><p>“Yuuri!” Viktor cried out. Vicchan barked, bounding toward his master excitedly.</p><p>“Viktor!” Yuuri beamed. “I- oof!”</p><p>Viktor had tackled him, causing both of them to fall into the stream as he pressed his lips to Yuuri’s. Vicchan jumped into the water next to them, yipping excitedly at the cool water as he splashed around.</p><p>“Viktor!” Yuuri gasped, laughing a little. “What was that for?"</p><p>Viktor wasn’t laughing. Instead, he was frowning down at him. Yuuri’s laughter died in his chest as he realized there were tears in his eyes.</p><p>“Viktor?” Yuuri asked, softly this time.</p><p>Viktor sniffled. “I woke up and you were gone,” he said, “and so was the shell. I thought… I thought you had-“ He didn’t finish.</p><p>“Oh,” Yuuri breathed, pulling him into a hug while ignoring how wet they were. “I’m sorry, I meant to be back before sunrise. I just wanted to talk to Chris for a bit- I’m sorry Viktor.”</p><p>“I shouldn’t have doubted you,” Viktor mumbled. “I knew you wouldn’t leave Vicchan, but-“</p><p>“Viktor,” Yuuri said, surprising both of them with how sharp his tone was. He reached up with both hands to cup Viktor’s face. “I wouldn’t leave Vicchan,” he agreed. “But I also wouldn’t leave you.”</p><p>Then, they were kissing again, Yuuri using the pads of his thumbs to wipe Viktor’s tears away. Viktor’s arms tightened around Yuuri’s waist, like he was afraid that if he let go, Yuuri would disappear. When they pulled away, Yuuri looked around them and cocked his head slightly to the side.</p><p>“What are these?” He looked at the delicate bushels of yellow petals, recently grown in the water.</p><p><a id="return21" name="return21"></a>Viktor looked flustered, suddenly. “Erm,” he said, not quite meeting Yuuri’s eyes. “Yellow hyacinths<sup>[<a href="#note21">21</a>]</sup>.”</p><p>Yuuri blinked, then felt his leap in realization. “Oh,” he murmured, and kissed him again. “Idiot. I don’t want anyone else but you.”</p><p>“We should probably dry off,” Viktor suggested, with a giggle. “We’re soaked.”</p><p>Yuuri laughed, and accepted Viktor’s hand to pull him up out of the water. They made their way to a sunny patch of grass and lounged for the rest of the morning into the afternoon, lazily drying off. It was only then that Yuuri noticed the colorful patches of flowers that Viktor had left behind while running toward him.</p><p><a id="return22" name="return22"></a>Lily of the valley.<sup>[<a href="#note22">22</a>]</sup></p><p>Yuuri tackled him into another hug without any warning, not that Viktor seemed to be complaining.</p><p>It was a couple more months before Yurio came by to visit, thus putting Yuuri’s plan on hold indefinitely. The mortals had, once again, been waging war. Yuuri usually didn’t pay much attention to wars, and knew only when they occurred because of a sudden influx of souls to the Underworld. Now, it meant that Yurio was unable to visit until the mortals finally settled their petty differences.</p><p>Needless to say, it took awhile for the war god to finally get some free time.</p><p>“Yurio,” Yuuri greeted, smiling. “Nice to see you. Katsudon as usual?”</p><p>Yurio huffed. “Of course,” he grumbled. “Like I’ll accept anything that he has to offer.” Here, he jabbed a thumb in Viktor’s direction. He was whistling to himself while preparing some lemonade for himself, since neither Yuuri nor Yurio liked lemonade anyways.</p><p>“Well,” Yuuri reminded him, “I could make something else, too, you know. Without the risk of getting trapped in Viktor’s garden forever.”</p><p>“Hmph,” was all Yurio offered, so Yuuri decided to stick to the original plan and make katsudon.</p><p>“Vitya?” Yuuri asked, sweetly. Viktor practically melted at the pet name, and Yuuri had to smother a grin because it was <em> just too easy</em>.</p><p>“Yes, Yuuri?” Viktor responded, eyes wide with adoration.</p><p>“Could you fill this with water?” Yuuri held out the largest pot. “I was thinking of making some extra to send Yurio home with.”</p><p><a id="return23" name="return23"></a>“Of course, my love!” Viktor took the pot, practically floating in the direction of the brook, leaving behind only a trail of small holly shrubs<sup>[<a href="#note23">23</a>]</sup>.</p><p>“You two are disgusting,” Yurio told them, as if he knew the meaning as well. He probably didn’t need a book to figure out what it generally meant.</p><p>Yuuri rolled his eyes, but was not offended in the least. “I just needed to get him away,” he said. Then, he brushed a hand over the grass he was sitting on. A gold nugget, about the size of a fist, melted out of the ground, just as he had done in Chris’s domain.</p><p>Yurio’s eyes bugged out of his head. “What the Hades, Katsudon?”</p><p>“Rude,” Yuuri said to him, half-heartedly. “Don’t take my name in vain.”</p><p>“Shut up,” Yurio scoffed. “What is that for?”</p><p>“You’re friends with Hephaestus, right?” Yuuri asked, in lieu of a real answer. </p><p>Yurio’s face reddened, and he looked away pointedly. Yuuri had to hide a smile. He had never actually met said god; rumor had it that the God of the Forges was just as much of a recluse as Yuuri was, but he had heard someone mention, once, that the only person he ever emerged from his forge for was Yurio.</p><p>“Yeah,” Yurio said, finally. “I’ve met the guy, once or twice.”</p><p>“Great!” Yuuri decided to say, choosing to not comment on his blushing face. “Could you ask him to forge this into two rings?”</p><p>Yurio’s head snapped back to look at Yuuri, eyes widening in shock.</p><p>“You don’t mean…” he trailed off, eyes flickering in the direction that Viktor had taken off in.</p><p>“Yes,” Yuuri said, smile growing wider, if possible.</p><p>“Gross.” Yurio made a face of disgust. “And you don’t need that much gold for two tiny rings, idiot.” Still, Yurio took the gold nugget and stuck it under his shield, which was lying on the grass beside him.</p><p>“I know. Just tell him he can keep the rest as payment.”</p><p>“Otabek doesn’t need it,” Yurio muttered, but didn’t say anything else, so Yuuri figured it was okay.</p><p>Viktor returned with the water and Yuuri finished cooking dinner. They chatted idly with Yurio, asking about any news from Olympus.</p><p>“Oh yeah,” Yurio said suddenly, with a mouth full of noodles. “You idiots missed the Annual Banquet! You’ve never missed a banquet before.” He said this last part to Viktor.</p><p>Viktor shrugged. “I did not care to get a lecture,” he said. The Annual Banquet had been a few months ago, and while both Viktor and Yuuri had received invitations, neither had been particularly inclined to go. Instead, they spent the night sitting under the willow tree and feeding the baby deer that passed by.</p><p>“Thanatos was there, too,” Yuuri added, as an afterthought.</p><p>Yuuri looked up from his plate. “Phichit?” he said, surprised. “Why was he there? He’s usually too busy to go.”</p><p>Yurio shrugged. “He just said he was there in your stead. Way too happy for the God of Death, if you ask me. He and Seung-gil seemed to hit it off.”</p><p>Viktor’s eyebrows rose, but he didn’t comment. Yuuri, on the other hand, snorted. Phichit, the friendliest person Yuuri’s ever met, and the God of Wisdom, who was known to cut down his peers with sharp words and well timed insults. Well, that was an interesting pair if he’d ever heard one.</p><p>Then, Yurio’s words caught up to him, followed by a surge of guilt. Phichit was already a busy god, but without Yuuri, Phichit’s workload must have doubled. He remained quiet and contemplative for the rest of the night, until Yurio finally decided to leave, with a whole extra helping of katsudon to take on the road. He was mindful to hide the gold while saying goodbye to Viktor, and offered a nod to Yuuri before finally disappearing from the garden.</p><p>“C’mon, darling,” Viktor crooned. “What shall we do now?”</p><p>Yuuri shrugged, still bothered by Yurio’s comments from dinner. Viktor frowned. “What’s wrong?”</p><p>Yuuri let out a sigh. “It’s not that big a deal,” he admitted. “It’s just… I have duties, you know. And sure everything’s fine, now, but poor Phichit’s probably been working double time, and if a god could just leave his responsibilities that easily, why have a god of that domain in the first place? I’m just afraid things have been working a little too smoothly.”</p><p>Viktor slid his hand into his, offering a reassuring squeeze. “I’m sure it’ll be fine,” he said, finally. “Let’s go stargazing tonight.”</p><p><a id="return24" name="return24"></a>Yuuri agreed, allowing Viktor to pull him away to an empty meadow to stare up at the stars until they fell asleep, curled in each other’s arms in a bedding made of white jasmines<sup>[<a href="#note24">24</a>]</sup>.</p><p>
  <em>I’m sure it’ll be fine.</em>
</p><hr/><p>It wasn’t fine.</p><p>All good things must come to an end. Yuuri knew this, of course, but he had been pushing away his instincts, screaming at him that something was very, very wrong.</p><p>Phichit was lying in the grass, looking exhausted as he caught his breath. He looked like he had raced here from the Underworld. </p><p>“Yuuri,” he said, breathless. “You know I wouldn’t cut your vacation short if it wasn’t an emergency.”</p><p>“Vacation?” Yuuri repeated, a little hysterical. A full year away from the Underworld, and Phichit still called it a <em>vacation</em>.</p><p>“What’s wrong?” Viktor asked, tightening his hold on Yuuri.</p><p>“There’s something wrong,” Phichit explained, sitting up slowly now. He looked grim. “I can’t believe I didn’t notice, but the Underworld is… it’s falling apart.”</p><p>Yuuri’s heart sank. “What?”</p><p>“The souls are fine, the technical parts have been handled by Mari, Minako, and Yuuko for the past year. But there’s something about your presence that stabilizes the realm. The rivers are flooding, the asphodel are dying, and there are even reports that Elysium is experiencing earthquakes. Pretty soon, the Isles of the Blessed will be in Celestino’s domain,” Phichit said, grimly. “And that’s only scraping the surface. Yuuri… you need to come home.”</p><p>
  <em>Home.</em>
</p><p>The word sent an ache through his chest, but not of yearning. He hadn’t thought of the Underworld as “home” in a long time. This didn’t feel like going home, it felt like he was being torn <em> away </em> from his home- from Viktor.</p><p>Yuuri looked up at Viktor helplessly. He didn’t know what to do.</p><p>The God of Nature looked grim. It was a strange expression; Viktor was almost always smiling, always laughing. It was like his youthful face wasn’t normally equipped to handle the sad emotion that it was now displaying. When he didn’t say anything, Yuuri clenched his fists and shook a little bit.</p><p>“I-“ Yuuri swallowed the lump in his throat and looked back at Phichit miserably. “I’m not sure I can,” he said, but it sounded weak even to himself.</p><p>“You should go.”</p><p>Silence.</p><p>Yuuri looked back up at Viktor, eyes wide.</p><p>“You should go,” Viktor repeated, more firmly this time. He avoided looking at Yuuri. “They need you. I’ve kept you from your duties for long enough. You’re King of the Underworld, not Queen of Nature. I shouldn’t have pretended otherwise.”</p><p>“Viktor,” Yuuri breathed, reaching out for him. Viktor caught his hand, and brushed his lips against his knuckles. “I… I don’t know how I could leave you.”</p><p>“I could go with you,” Viktor offered, quietly.</p><p>And Yuuri- oh, he would have loved that. The thought of introducing Viktor to his friends, to Mari, Minako, and Yuuko, who would surely accept Viktor with open arms and probably give him a long, detailed history of all of Yuuri’s embarrassing moments. He wanted it so badly, to have Viktor meet his Furies, to have him ride in the small boat with Charon and himself. To see Viktor tending to the flowers in the courtyard of his palace. To have Viktor at his side, in a throne right next to his.</p><p>But it also hurt, the thought of Viktor, so bright and full of life, in a land completely devoid of it. The Underworld sucked out the life of everything; it was no place for the King of Nature, no matter how much Yuuri yearned for Viktor to be by his side.</p><p>“You can’t,” Yuuri breathed. “It’s… I couldn’t do that to you. I couldn’t take you from your garden.”</p><p>“You can’t take me away from <em> you </em>,” Viktor insisted, unshed tears building in his eyes now. </p><p>“No,” Yuuri said, sharply. “I can’t… I can’t see you wither away in the Underworld forever.”</p><p>Then, Yuuri straightened, and turned back to Phichit, who was watching the exchange with wide eyes, mouth agape.</p><p>“Phichit,” he said, urgently. “Will the Underworld be okay, for twenty-four more hours?”</p><p>Phichit nodded dumbly. “Yeah, I think so,” he said.</p><p>“Okay,” Yuuri said, quietly. “I’ll see you then, in twenty-four hours. Come back, then. And tell everyone that…”</p><p>He hesitated, then a squeeze from Viktor strengthened his resolve. Yuuri squared his shoulders and looked down at Phichit with a set jaw, an expression he normally only wore when he was holding court in his palace.</p><p>“Tell everyone that their king is returning,” he said, voice sounding distant even to himself.</p><p>Phichit knew when he was being dismissed. He gave a short nod, standing shakily and squeezing Yuuri’s shoulder. Then, with a flap of his wings, Phichit was gone.</p><p><a id="return25" name="return25"></a>Yuuri exhaled, then turned to face Viktor. He was still avoiding his eyes. To Yuuri’s horror, there were forget-me-nots<sup>[<a href="#note25">25</a>]</sup> beginning to grow around his feet, tiny blue faces pointed right at Yuuri.</p><p>“Viktor,” Yuuri prompted, gently. “Let’s go water the bluebells.”</p><p>Viktor didn’t respond for a long moment. Then, “Okay.”</p><p>They spent the rest of the day in a daze. They went about their usual activity, tending to the plants and clearing out weeds, but with the terrifying reality of the end of their time together looming overhead. Yurio even stopped by for a quick visit. </p><p>“Phichit told me what happened,” Yurio grunted. “You gonna be okay, Katsudon?"</p><p>“I’ll be fine,” Yuuri assured the young god, but it felt more like he was trying to reassure himself.</p><p>Vicchan seemed to sense the somber mood around them. He nosed at Viktor’s ankle, who smiled a little and bent down to offer him pets.</p><p>“Vicchan,” he murmured, “I’ll miss you. How about I go get your favorite ball, and you can bring it with you?”</p><p>Vicchan yipped in what sounded like agreement. </p><p>While Viktor was distracted with Vicchan, Yurio leaned close to Yuuri and whispered, “I got Otabek to rush it.”</p><p>“Huh?” was all that Yuuri could say.</p><p>Yurio clasped his hand, and Yuuri felt his heart skip a beat in realization.</p><p>Then, Yurio stood up.</p><p>“Well, I’ve got to head back,” he said, casual as ever. “I’ll see you two around, eventually.” </p><p>Yuuri tightened his fist around the two rings that Yurio had slipped him, and hid them in his tunic. </p><p>Later on, Viktor asked, “Can you teach me?”</p><p>“Hm?” Yuuri asked, his head in Viktor’s lap.</p><p>“Can you teach me to make katsudon?” he asked. “So that when you’re gone… I can still eat it, and remember you?”</p><p>Yuuri’s heart broke, and he agreed. Their last hours together were spent teaching Viktor to cook the rice, to prepare the eggs perfectly, until Viktor’s first attempt at katsudon sat in the pot.</p><p>“Nice job,” Yuuri said, with a proud smile. </p><p>Viktor tried a taste, and frowned. “It doesn’t taste like yours,” he said, unhappily. Yuuri ran a hand through Viktor’s hair, petting the strands gently. “You’ll get better, through practice.”</p><p>Though, everything in Yuuri’s body abhorred the very thought of it. He wanted to stay with Viktor, to promise him that he’ll never have to cook again, because Yuuri would do it. He’d do it for eternity, if it meant he got to stay here, in their little paradise, in the Garden of Persephone. What was supposed to be a place of his imprisonment had quickly turned into their haven, away from the judgmental eyes of Olympus and the despairing aura of the Underworld.</p><p>Yuuri’s eyes fell upon the pot, still warm and full of Viktor’s katsudon.</p><p><em>Persephone’s</em> katsudon.</p><p>He waited patiently as Viktor’s eyes drooped and finally closed, head in Yuuri’s lap as he peacefully slumbered. Then, he reached forward and took the spoon out of the pot. Heart hammering in his chest, he managed six quick bites before Viktor’s eyes shot open.</p><p>“Yuuri!” he cried out, smacking the spoon out of his hands and shooting up to a seated position. “What are you doing?” he demanded.</p><p>Yuuri took Viktor’s hands in his. “I love you,” he said, stubbornly. “I want to stay with you, forever.”</p><p>“You idiot,” Viktor breathed, tears falling from his eyes. Yuuri wiped his own eyes, unsurprised to find himself crying as well. </p><p>“I know,” he said, with a shaky laugh. “I’m the worst god ever.”</p><p>“It’s my fault,” Viktor sighed. “I just couldn’t let you go. But the Underworld needs you.”</p><p>Yuuri laughed again. “A little too late,” he said, pointing at the pot.</p><p>“How much did you eat?” Viktor asked, narrowing his eyes.</p><p>“Only got a few bites before you knocked it out of my hands,” he admitted.</p><p>Viktor looked contemplative. “Then how about we compromise?” he offered.</p><p>Yuuri looked at his lover. “Compromise?”</p><p>“You’ll spend a month with me, for every bite you took,” Viktor explained, eyes brightening with eager determination. “And the rest of the time in the Underworld, so your realm doesn’t fall into disarray.”</p><p>Yuuri swallowed, his heart bursting out his chest. “Six months, for six bites,” he murmured, cradling Viktor’s cheek with his palm. “Sounds… barely doable, honestly. That’s a long time, without you.”</p><p>“You’ll make do, I think.” Viktor winked, but he still looked sad. “It’s better than nothing.”</p><p>It was true. It <em>was</em> better than nothing. He pulled Viktor into a deep kiss, full of pride at his lover’s brilliance.</p><p>They fell asleep, that night, to the sounds of crickets chirping and the feeling of their arms wrapped around each other.</p><p>As usual, Viktor was up before Yuuri, who awoke to his lover trailing his lips up the side of his neck.</p><p>“Viktor,” Yuuri groaned.</p><p>Viktor pulled away a bit, giving him a grin. “Good morning, Yuuri.”</p><p>They spent the morning lazily wandering the fields, taking in the garden one last time until eventually, it was time for Yuuri to leave. </p><p>Phichit appeared, black wings folded neatly as he landed near the pond. He could immediately tell something was off.</p><p>“Oh no,” he groaned. “Yuuri, tell me you didn’t-"</p><p>“I’ll tell you about it later,” Yuuri promised, and Phichit relented.</p><p>“Are you ready, then, Yuuri?” he asked, instead of pressing the matter.</p><p>Yuuri glanced at Viktor. “One moment,” he said. Phichit nodded and stepped back a bit, as Yuuri turned fully to face his lover.</p><p>“Viktor,” he said, with Viktor’s entire attention focused on him. “I love you so, so much. I think I have loved you for a long time before I even entered your garden. This past year has been amazing. You’ve reminded me that without death, there wouldn’t be all this life.” He looked around at the garden they’ve built together. His patch of flowers had grown and blossomed, standing tall and beautiful, just like the rest of Viktor’s garden. He knew Viktor would take care of them, and they would be just as beautiful when he returned.</p><p><a id="return26" name="return26"></a>“I love you too,” Viktor said, soft-spoken. Yuuri’s heart broke at the sight of the cyclamens<sup>[<a href="#note26">26</a>]</sup> surrounding them.</p><p>Yuuri kissed him, then pulled back and took his hand in one of his own. Shakily, Yuuri reached into his pocket and pulled out the two rings. He dared not look up to see Viktor’s face, but he heard the sharp inhale of surprise.</p><p>“Yuuri…”</p><p>“It’s a thank you,” Yuuri said, voice low. “For everything, for the past year, for teaching me how to value life again.”</p><p>“I didn’t have to teach you anything,” Viktor whispered. “From the moment you stepped into my garden, you were so kind, to that nymph who had just died. I don’t think you ever stopped valuing life. I just reminded you to love it, too.” Yuuri hadn’t even realized Viktor had seen him with the nymph, before his whole world had been turned upside down.</p><p>Yuuri took a shuddering breath, willing himself not to cry. “You did. But the ring, it’s also a promise.</p><p>“I-” Viktor’s voice came out pained.</p><p>“Six months,” Yuuri rushed out. “Just six months, and I’ll be back. Will you… will you wait for me?”</p><p>“Yuuri.” Viktor’s voice was stronger now. Yuuri looked up, and Viktor immediately pulled him into a kiss. They parted, and Viktor’s trembling hands took one of the rings.</p><p>“Yes,” Viktor breathed out, sliding the ring onto Yuuri’s finger. “Yes, of course I will. I’d wait a millennium for you.”</p><p>Yuuri knew he was crying, but he was trying to ignore the blurring in his eyes as he slid the other ring onto Viktor’s finger.</p><p>After a long embrace, Yuuri reluctantly stepped away. He wiped his eyes furiously and turned back to Phichit. With a wave of his hand, his tunic, gifted to him by Viktor, was replaced by his usual attire of dark, heavy robes. His feet newly covered by his old shoes, Yuuri already missed the feeling of the soft grass between his toes.</p><p>“I’m ready,” he said, sounding more confident than he felt.</p><p>Phichit cast him a long look, and Yuuri didn’t know if the expression was pity or sympathy. He decided not to dwell on it. Vicchan barked a couple times, whimpering as he nodded his heads in Viktor’s direction.</p><p>“We’ll have to take a pitstop before,” Phichit said. “To pick up some souls on the way.”</p><p>Yuuri nodded, and waved his hand. Vicchan sank into the ground and disappeared, sent back to his usual post at the Gates of Hades.</p><p>Phichit took his hand and they flew off. Yuuri watched the view of Viktor grow smaller, and smaller, until he was finally gone from his view.</p><p>“I’m sorry, Yuuri,” Phichit said, genuinely.</p><p>“Thanks, Phichit.”</p><p>Yuuri really wasn’t in the mood, but he tried to be as sympathetic as possible to the poor souls who had met their untimely end. Most heartbreaking was collecting the souls of an old married couple, who had passed mere minutes apart. They had accepted their fates, walking to Yuuri hand in hand, smiling.</p><p>
  <em>The Fates really like to see me in pain, don’t they?</em>
</p><p>Finally, after a long day of soul collecting, they returned to the Underworld the old fashioned way. They landed at the Entrance of the Underworld, and Yuuri could feel the stares of the spirits, newly departed from life, burning into his back.</p><p>“What are we doing here?” Yuuri asked, tiredly.</p><p>Phichit shrugged. “I thought you’d appreciate the long way ‘round, for old time's sake.”</p><p>Yuuri didn’t respond, merely approaching the gates with a nod at Georgi and Leo, who were posted outside today.</p><p>“Hey, boss,” the God of Fear said, with shocking softness. Georgi wasn’t one to pull punches, but his voice had a layer of sympathy in it today.</p><p>“Good to see you,” Leo added. He looked hesitant, like he wasn’t sure what to say.</p><p>Phichit gave them a shake of the head. Yuuri bent down to scratch Vicchan’s heads, who whined and whimpered.</p><p>“I know, boy,” he whispered. “I miss him too.”</p><p>The two entered the gates. Yuuri barely acknowledged Mila, who was the only one posted on the inside of the threshold. She seemed smart enough to not say anything, and merely offered him a smile. </p><p>Yuuri was quiet the entire journey across the River Styx. Takeshi’s boat was for once, empty of all souls except for them. The ferryman tried to make conversation, but quickly caught on to the fact that Yuuri was certainly not in the mood.</p><p>They trudged their way past up to the palace.</p><p>“Well, this is where I leave you,” Phichit said, looking at him carefully. “I’ll stop by tomorrow, okay?”</p><p>Yuuri nodded. Only a few minutes into his domain, and he could already feel everything clicking into place. The disaster that Phichit had described to him would be contained, hopefully within a week or two, without him even having to lift a finger. It should have felt reassuring, knowing that whatever damage his absence had done to the realm would be remedied quickly, but instead, Yuuri just felt a sense of bitterness. It felt <em> pointless </em> to be back. Worst of all, it felt empty.</p><p>The Furies greeted him at the door.</p><p>“Yuuri, you’re back!” Yuuko beamed, hugging him tightly. Yuuri managed a weak smile.</p><p>“Nice to see you guys,” he said. “Sorry for unexpectedly dumping all that work onto you.”</p><p>“Not a problem,” Minako told him. “You need a vacation every once and awhile.”</p><p>Yuuri laughed a bit. “I think I’ll be taking a vacation more often, from now on,” he promised. His heart ached at the thought of seeing Viktor again,</p><p>“By the way,” Mari told him, her stoic face not giving anything away. “There’s someone here to see you, in the throne room.”</p><p>“Already?” Yuuri groaned. “Been back five minutes and there’s already some poor soul trying to petition me to get into Elysium.”</p><p>Mari’s lips twitched, and there was a glint of something in her eye. Too tired to think too hard about this, Yuuri turned and strode into the palace. He had been dreading the return to routine he had grown to despise in the millennia since his appointment as Lord of the Underworld, and now, the minute he returned, he was expected to hold court.</p><p>Then, he entered the throne room, and stopped dead in his tracks at the sight.</p><p>Viktor sat in his throne, legs slung over one arm rest, back pressed against the other armrest. He was dressed in long, black robes, which he had clearly gotten from Yuuri’s wardrobe, and he was, for once, wearing shoes. The Helm of Darkness sat perched on Viktor’s stomach. With one hand, Viktor was holding Yuuri’s bident, and with the other, he held a single pomegranate. A pomegranate that was most definitely deficient six seeds from when it had first been picked, if Yuuri knew Viktor at all. Most strikingly, however, was Viktor’s hair. Once waist-length and meticulously brushed out to appear flowing and angelic, it was now almost completely gone, leaving only bangs that obscured part of Viktor’s face.</p><p>“Oh, Yuuri, just in time!” Viktor declared, upon Yuuri’s entrance to his own throne room. “I think maroon drapes would really go well in here, it would match the rug and everything. What do you think?”</p><p>Yuuri’s eyes tracked Viktor’s hand movements as he popped one final pomegranate seed into his mouth.</p><p>“What-“ Yuuri croaked. “What are you doing?”</p><p>Viktor straightened in the throne, swinging his legs off the armrest. He let the bident lean against the throne, using his free hand to brush his bangs out of his face. Yuuri’s heart beat harder at the sight of his full face.</p><p>“Six months is an awfully long time,” Viktor tsked. “Rude of you to leave your lover behind for half a year."</p><p>"I don't..." Yuuri said, weakly.</p><p>Viktor then sighed dramatically. "I suppose I should have seen it coming, when you kidnapped <em>me</em> out of revenge for my kidnapping of you. And of course, your wiles have seduced me, and I had no <em>choice</em> but to eat six pomegranate seeds.”</p><p>Yuuri’s mouth was dry as he approached the throne. “Well,” Yuuri said, shakily. “I guess you’ll be stuck here, for six months, then.”</p><p>Viktor was grinning outright now. “It’s a good thing my lover is the King of the Underworld, isn’t it?” He held up his hand, and the ring glinted, reflecting in the dim, torch lit room. The sight of the gold on Viktor’s finger sent Yuuri into action, rushing forward, crowding Viktor against his throne, and kissing him as deeply as possible. He thought maybe Viktor had dropped the pomegranate at some point, but he could hardly bring himself to care. He pulled back, grinning at the sight of Viktor, pink faced and smiling on Yuuri's throne.</p><p>Viktor then reached into his robes, pulling out a single rose. Then, with a wave of his hand, the rose began to multiply, until the newly formed bouquet was larger than the throne. When it looked like he could carry no more, the roses began to grow around the wood of the throne, blossoming until it left Yuuri gasping, his mind awhirl. He wasn’t about to count each rose, but-</p><p><a id="return27" name="return27"></a>“One hundred and eight roses<sup>[<a href="#note27">27</a>]</sup>?” Yuuri asked, his voice small. He looked up at Viktor for confirmation, hardly able to believe it when he nodded. “Are you serious?”</p><p>“I’ve always been serious about you, Yuuri.” Viktor was smiling, almost shyly. Then, he held out the original rose, a silent question, and Yuuri took it with trembling fingers.</p><p>“Yes,” he whispered. “Yes, yes, yes-”</p><p>Viktor cut him off with a long kiss, arms wrapping around his neck and keeping him close. The bouquet fell to the ground at the feet of the throne, but neither cared. Yuuri held Viktor’s face in his hands, like he was afraid that he would disappear at any moment. They broke apart as the Furies entered, all smiling at the pair.</p><p>“Minako,” Yuuri said, breathless and still teary-eyed.</p><p>“Yes?” Minako asked, with a chuckle.</p><p>Yuuri took Viktor’s hand, and kissed the other god’s ring. “Call someone to build me another throne, will you? One fit for a queen.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Excerpt from <em>The Language of Flowers</em> by Victoria Otto</p><p><a id="note1" name="note1"></a><sup>1</sup>Buttercup: childishness <sup>[<a href="#return1">return to text</a>]</sup></p><p><a id="note2" name="note2"></a><sup>2</sup>Ranunculus: radiant with charm" <sup>[<a href="#return2">return to text</a>]</sup></p><p><a id="note3" name="note3"></a><sup>3</sup>Dandelion: happiness <sup>[<a href="#return3">return to text</a>]</sup></p><p><a id="note4" name="note4"></a><sup>4</sup>Sweetpea: pleasure <sup>[<a href="#return4">return to text</a>]</sup></p><p><a id="note5" name="note5"></a><sup>5</sup>Lavender: calm <sup>[<a href="#return5">return to text</a>]</sup></p><p><a id="note6" name="note6"></a><sup>6</sup>Bouvardia: eagerness <sup>[<a href="#return6">return to text</a>]</sup></p><p><a id="note7" name="note7"></a><sup>7</sup>Magnolia: love of nature <sup>[<a href="#return7">return to text</a>]</sup></p><p><a id="note8" name="note8"></a><sup>8</sup>Chrysanthemum: truth <sup>[<a href="#return8">return to text</a>]</sup></p><p><a id="note9" name="note9"></a><sup>9</sup>Lily: motherhood <sup>[<a href="#return9">return to text</a>]</sup></p><p><a id="note10" name="note10"></a><sup>10</sup>Pink rose: gratitude <sup>[<a href="#return10">return to text</a>]</sup></p><p><a id="note11" name="note11"></a><sup>11</sup>Tansy: war declaration <sup>[<a href="#return11">return to text</a>]</sup></p><p><a id="note12" name="note12"></a><sup>12</sup>Sunflower: adoration <sup>[<a href="#return12">return to text</a>]</sup></p><p><a id="note13" name="note13"></a><sup>13</sup>Yellow carnation: disdain <sup>[<a href="#return12">return to text</a>]</sup></p><p><a id="note14" name="note14"></a><sup>14</sup>Zinnia: thoughts of absent friend <sup>[<a href="#return14">return to text</a>]</sup></p><p><a id="note15" name="note15"></a><sup>15</sup>Gladiolus: infatuation <sup>[<a href="#return15">return to text</a>]</sup></p><p><a id="note16" name="note16"></a><sup>16</sup>Poppy: sleep <sup>[<a href="#return16">return to text</a>]</sup></p><p><a id="note17" name="note17"></a><sup>17</sup>Yellow tulip: perfect love <sup>[<a href="#return17">return to text</a>]</sup></p><p><a id="note18" name="note18"></a><sup>18</sup>Daffodil: unrequited love <sup>[<a href="#return18">return to text</a>]</sup></p><p><a id="note19" name="note19"></a><sup>19</sup>Nightshade: honesty <sup>[<a href="#return19">return to text</a>]</sup></p><p><a id="note20" name="note20"></a><sup>20</sup>Ambrosia: returned love <sup>[<a href="#return20">return to text</a>]</sup></p><p><a id="note21" name="note21"></a><sup>21</sup>Yellow hyacinth: jealousy <sup>[<a href="#return21">return to text</a>]</sup></p><p><a id="note22" name="note22"></a><sup>22</sup>Lily of the valley: return of happiness <sup>[<a href="#return22">return to text</a>]</sup></p><p><a id="note23" name="note23"></a><sup>23</sup>Holly: domestic happiness <sup>[<a href="#return23">return to text</a>]</sup></p><p><a id="note24" name="note24"></a><sup>24</sup>Jasmine: sweet love <sup>[<a href="#return24">return to text</a>]</sup></p><p><a id="note25" name="note25"></a><sup>25</sup>Forget-me-not: remembrance <sup>[<a href="#return25">return to text</a>]</sup></p><p><a id="note26" name="note26"></a><sup>26</sup>Cyclamen: separation <sup>[<a href="#return26">return to text</a>]</sup></p><p><a id="note27" name="note27"></a><sup>27</sup>108 Red Roses: "Will you marry me?" <sup>[<a href="#return27">return to text</a>]</sup></p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Epilogue</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Yuuri and Viktor return to the mortal world after a long winter in the Underworld, just in time for the Annual Banquet on Olympus.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Viktor cocked his head in the mirror contemplatively. “Yuuri,” he requested. Through the reflection of the mirror, he could see his fiancé’s head lift from the bed. “Plum, or lavender?”</p>
<p>Yuuri groaned, flopping back onto the bed. “Come on, Viktor, we’re going to be late,” he whined, as though he weren’t the one who insisted on spending a full thirty minutes painstakingly brushing out Viktor’s hair. Not that Viktor was complaining; Yuuri had whined about missing Viktor’s long hair, so once Springtime came, he had spent every moment possible playing with and brushing out Viktor’s long, silver strands.</p>
<p>Viktor pouted at him through the mirror. “Be more patient,” he scolded, holding the lavender tie up to his neck, comparing it against his charcoal gray suit. He loved the Annual Banquet; it was the only Olympus event that they were allowed to wear mortal world fashion. “Now, answer the question.”</p>
<p>“Plum,” Yuuri said, finally, rolling his eyes fondly. Viktor held it up, and then made a noise of agreement. </p>
<p>He shed his jacket, draping it atop the standing mirror in order to pop the collar of his shirt and wrap the tie around his neck. Before he could properly tie it, he felt Yuuri’s hands on his. Viktor turned, dropping his hands and letting Yuuri carefully pull and twist his tie into a neat full Windsor. His fingers deftly tied the knot, letting the silk slide between his fingers expertly until he was tightening the knot up to Viktor’s throat. He stared at the perfectly manicured fingers, the same way he stared at them so many months ago, only instead of a tie, they had been twisting dandelions together to craft a crown. </p>
<p>He swallowed, then, as Yuuri fixed his collar as well, his hands dancing so close to his skin. Viktor captured one of them, before Yuuri could back away, and placed a gentle kiss on his knuckles, lips brushing against the cool band of Yuuri’s ring.</p>
<p>Yuuri laughed at him. “Come on, hurry up.” He stepped back and reluctantly pulled his arm away too.</p>
<p>Viktor pouted at him, but adjusted his tie to give himself a bit more breathing room before buttoning his waistcoat. Yuuri’s eyes flashed, eyeing him salaciously as Viktor slid each button into the appropriate button hole of the vest, like he was already thinking about how he was going to get it <em> off </em> of him.</p>
<p>Viktor shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts; if he kept thinking like that, they would never make it to the banquet.</p>
<p>“Here, Vitya.” Yuuri held out his coat so that Viktor easily slipped an arm through each sleeve and shrugged it on. He turned again to face the mirror, inspecting his appearance carefully while adjusting the cufflinks.</p>
<p>“You look good,” he promised. “Now, let’s go, please? If we’re late, Yakov will have my head.”</p>
<p>“He will do no such thing,” Viktor said, sharply. Yakov was uptight, but Viktor was pretty sure he was fond of Yuuri. Pretty sure, at least, from their limited correspondence recently. They had been so busy lately that, ever since the pair had returned to Viktor’s gardens from the Underworld, he hadn’t really had a chance to talk to his mentor. The harvest god had been surprised by the news of their future union, but hadn’t seemed as put out by it as Yuuri had been afraid of.</p>
<p>Yuuri chuckled, and kissed his forehead. Viktor huffed, then looked back at Yuuri to examine his outfit as well. He frowned at the sight before him.</p>
<p>“I thought I got rid of that tie,” Viktor said, poking at the blue silk. Yuuri lightly slapped at the offending hand.</p>
<p>“There’s nothing wrong with this tie!” he huffed.</p>
<p>Viktor sighed, dramatically. “To think, the King of the Underworld has no sense of fashion,” he mocked.</p>
<p>“Hey,” Yuuri said, with mock offense. “That’s the Queen of Spring, to you. It’s March, darling.”</p>
<p>They giggled a bit, even though, technically, neither of them would be queen of anything for another three months. Viktor wrapped an arm around Yuuri and pulled him into a quick kiss.</p>
<p>“Oh, I have an idea on how to distract from that ugly tie!” Viktor’s face lit up.</p>
<p>Yuuri looked exasperated. “What? Viktor, it’s fine! We’re going to be late!”</p>
<p><a id="return1" name="return1"></a>“We’re already late as is, what’s another minute?” Viktor declared, already walking to the windowsill at the pots, filled only with soil. He waved a hand over one, causing a bright blue cornflower<sup>[<a href="#note1">1</a>]</sup> to sprout and bloom. In the second pot, violets<sup>[<a href="#note2">2</a>]</sup> blossomed brilliantly in seconds. He plucked a bulb from each pot, then reached over the desk next to the window for his tools.</p>
<p>“Viktor,” Yuuri sounded confused.</p>
<p>“Hold on, real quick-” Viktor stuck his tongue out a bit, carefully snipping at the stem of the cornflower and tying a piece of twine around it. He did the same with the violet, then spun on his heels and presented them to Yuuri.</p>
<p>His fiancé’s face cleared immediately, and then softened. “Oh, Viktor,” he said, practically melting at the sight of the boutonniere.</p>
<p>“May I?” Viktor asked, grinning.</p>
<p>“Only if I can return the favor,” Yuuri laughed.</p>
<p>Viktor carefully pinned the blue boutonniere to the label of Yuuri’s jacket, smiling as he stepped back to admire his handiwork. Yuuri then pulled him close to do the same to Viktor, easily pinning the violet bulb to Viktor’s suit. It sent a jolt of excitement through Viktor, the thought of them walking through Olympus with matching boutonnieres. </p>
<p>“Let’s go, then,” he declared, invigorated by the mental image.</p>
<p>“Oh, so now you’re ready to go?” Yuuri teased, taking him by the hand as they walked out of their shared bedroom.</p>
<p>“Yes,” Viktor pouted. There were a couple little barks that got their attention, and Yuuri bent down at the two cerberuses trying to get their attention.</p>
<p>“Vicchan, Makkachin,” Yuuri said, sternly. “Don’t make a mess of things, okay? Be good.”</p>
<p>Makkachin, their newest addition to the family, yipped at him, huffing and wagging her tail in agreement. She was only a few months old, but was already growing steadily bigger than Vicchan, who was licking Yuuri’s face three times, one from each head. Viktor laughed, watching the three of them with a wide smile. Yuuri straightened up and looped an arm through Viktor’s offered one. </p>
<p>“Let’s go,” he said. They exited their cottage, a gift from Chris as an “early wedding present” to them, and stepped out to the garden. </p>
<p>“See, no need to rush,” Viktor teased, with a laugh. “Phichit’s not even here yet.”</p>
<p>Yuuri rolled his eyes a bit, unimpressed. The ever busy God of Death was often late, so Yuuri didn’t look swayed.</p>
<p>Viktor took the opportunity to gaze at the garden. When he and Yuuri had returned to the mortal world just in time for the first ever spring, the latter had been shocked to see the state of the garden. </p>
<p>Most of the crops and flowers had died, leaving nothing but shriveled, dry remains of the once colorful garden they had once known. The first winter had clearly not been kind to most of the plants, which had only ever known an eternal summer.</p>
<p>“We were gone for six months,” Viktor had said, amused and exasperated at the same time. “What did you think was going to happen?”</p>
<p>“I don’t know!” Yuuri had cried, anguished. “Plant magic stuff, probably!” He had seemed more upset over the death of Viktor’s plants than Viktor was.</p>
<p>“We’ll rebuild,” Viktor had promised. “I haven’t had to do actual work for my garden in a very long time, so I am actually glad.”</p>
<p>Yuuri had looked up at him hopefully. “Really?” he had asked, incredulous. “Even if your plants will only live a few months now? You’re still… you’re still okay with this whole arrangement?”</p>
<p>“Of course,” Viktor had assured him, wondering how he could ever regret this decision to stay with Yuuri. “Their shorter lifetimes will make their presence more special, after all. And I’m sure you’ll help me replant, every season.”</p>
<p>That had been only a few weeks ago, and already the garden was beginning to blossom with annuals. There were some perennials that, they had been relieved to see, managed to remain as beautiful as ever.</p>
<p>“Like you,” Viktor had cooed, earning a cry of embarrassment and laughter from the other god. </p>
<p>Phichit eventually arrived, looking a little ruffled but cleanly put together in a dark suit and lovely gray tie. </p>
<p>“About time.” Yuuri grinned. Phichit huffed out a little laugh.</p>
<p>“Nice to see you guys too,” he joked. “How’s the mortal treating you? Viktor taking good care of you?” He winked.</p>
<p>“Phichit!” Yuuri whined. “We’ve only been gone a month now.”</p>
<p>“As good of care as he took of me,” Viktor promised, ignoring his fiancé’s whines. </p>
<p>“You guys ready?” Phichit asked.</p>
<p>“Always.” Yuuri told him.</p>
<p>Phichit grabbed onto each of them and immediately took off. It had taken Viktor quite some time to get used to the God of Death’s usual mode of transportation, but living in the Underworld for an extended period of time certainly had helped. They landed at the foot of Olympus, gazing up at the long columns and entrance way into the city. Immediately, Phichit wandered off inside, presumably to catch up with some friends. He’d apparently grown quite close with some of the other gods since he’d taken on more of Yuuri’s responsibilities.</p>
<p>“Yuuri, Viktor!” a voice cried out.</p>
<p>They turned to see Sara waving at them excitedly, running over with her brother in tow.</p>
<p>“Sara.” Yuuri smiled politely. “How are you?”</p>
<p>“Good!” Sara said, excitedly. “I haven’t seen you in a while, but I can see you’re doing well.”</p>
<p>She winked here, and Yuuri blushed. Viktor grinned, pulling Yuuri a little closer at the acknowledgement.</p>
<p>“Hey, Michele,” Yuuri added, looking at the annoyed expression on the moon god’s face. Though, Viktor can’t remember the last time he had seen Michele look any differently. “Having a good night so far?” Viktor added, cheerily.</p>
<p>“Stay away from my sister,” he grunted, “and it might just be a good night.”</p>
<p>Ah, so not much had changed between the twin gods since the last time Viktor had seen them. Always reassuring.</p>
<p>“Mickey,” Sara scolded. “They’re getting married, you <em> know </em> this.”</p>
<p>Michele made a face, but grumbled in acknowledgement. The sun goddess rolled her eyes, playfully pushing her brother.</p>
<p>“Oh, I see Emil over there!” Sara’s eyes brightened. “Come on, Mickey, I know you wanna say hi!” She dragged her brother off in the direction of the cheerful messenger god, ignoring his flustered protests and complaints.</p>
<p>“We should head in,” Viktor suggested. </p>
<p>“I haven’t been here in a while,” Yuuri said, in a small voice. “I forgot how gorgeous the city was.”</p>
<p>Viktor hummed in agreement; he hadn’t actually visited Olympus in a couple years, since last March he had wanted to spend more time with Yuuri, while he had been his “prisoner.” It filled him with a strange nostalgia to be back. He remembered spending most of his youth running around the streets of Olympus, after all. </p>
<p>They entered the throne room and found Phichit again, who had struck up a conversation with Leo and Guang Hong.</p>
<p>The God of Sleep was the first to spot him. “Hey, Yuuri, Viktor,” Leo greeted, smiling easily. It had only been a few months since he had seen them, Viktor realized, but he had to admit he had missed his company. Leo had always been friendly when Viktor visited him at the Gate of Hades, and they had taken to talking on a semi-daily basis.</p>
<p>“Oh, hey guys,” Yuuri said. “Hope we’re not too late.”</p>
<p>“Nah, you’re on time,” Guang Hong reassured them. Viktor smiled at him; he hadn’t seen the God of the Hearth in a long time. Guang Hong often spent his time tending to the fire in the atrium of the throne room, a place Viktor had avoided outside of Annual Banquets ever since he had established his domain in the mortal world. </p>
<p>They made idle conversation, with Phichit jokingly griping about it being Viktor’s fault for his doubled workload. Viktor laughed good naturedly, and told him he made up for it enough during the winter months, when Viktor was officially queened and could actually help around the palace, keeping the souls of the Underworld in check and tending to the newly expanded gardens.</p>
<p>“Viktor,” Yuuri suddenly hissed, nudging him. His dark eyes flickered in the direction of Yakov, who was in deep conversation with his ex-wife. And not a moment too soon, as he had apparently spotted them as well, and was leading the Queen of the Gods right to them. </p>
<p>“Oh no,” Yuuri lamented.</p>
<p>“It’ll be fine, Yuuri,” Viktor told him, reassuringly. “It’s just Yakov and Lilia, they were basically my parents.”</p>
<p>“<em>Oh no</em>,” Yuuri repeated, more emphatically this time. Viktor couldn’t help but roll his eyes; Yuuri had a knack for studiously avoiding people. His fiancé had somehow managed to avoid both Yakov and Lilia for centuries now, but it would appear his luck had run out. It wasn’t like he didn't know this was coming, of course, after he had let Viktor talk him into going to this year’s Annual Banquet. </p>
<p>“Relax,” Yurio grunted, joining their group, along with Otabek. “Yakov is a big teddy bear.” Viktor nodded in agreement. </p>
<p>It was Lilia that Viktor was worried about, but he decided against bringing this fact up to present company.</p>
<p>Yuuri still looked doubtful, but it was far too late to do anything about it, as Yakov and Lilia had finally arrived at their group.</p>
<p>“Yakov!” Viktor chirped. “It is good to see you!”</p>
<p>Yakov let out a long suffering sigh. “Viktor,” he said, evenly. “It is good to see that winter is finally over.”</p>
<p>Which was about as close to <em> I missed you </em> that Viktor had ever gotten from his estranged mentor, so he grinned broadly before turning to Lilia with a dazzling smile.</p>
<p>“Lilia, you look lovely as always.”</p>
<p>The Olympian Queen of the Gods, Ruler of the Heavens, Goddess of Justice, Marriage, and Family, looked at him, with the most flat, unimpressed expression. Viktor winced internally, recognizing the expression that had been such a common sight throughout his youth. But he kept his friendly smile firmly in place; it wouldn’t do to unnerve Yuuri, right now.</p>
<p>“Viktor,” she said, in a clipped tone. “And Yuuri, it is nice to see you were able to make it to this year’s banquet.” To Viktor’s surprise, she actually sounded more cordial when addressing Yuuri.</p>
<p>Yuuri gulped, still nervous nonetheless. “Ah, yes. It helps that I am on, uh, sabbatical during the spring and summer months now,” he replied, carefully.</p>
<p>Viktor could hear Yurio’s guffaw from behind them.</p>
<p>“<em>Sabbatical</em>,” he heard Phichit repeat under his breath, snickering.</p>
<p>“So that’s what kids are calling it these days,” Yakov grumbled.</p>
<p>“Oh,” Viktor drew their attention, brightening up. “I completely forgot!”</p>
<p>He reached into his jacket and extracted two blue envelopes. They were labeled <em> Zeus </em> and <em> Demeter </em> in black script. He held them out, carefully taking note of their expressions.</p>
<p>“Wedding invitations!” Viktor explained, as they both took the envelopes. “Set for the summer solstice.”</p>
<p>He then looked at Yuuri, giving him a besotted smile. Yuuri smiled back, and the tension disappeared from his shoulders.</p>
<p>“We hope you can make it,” Yuuri added, reaching for his soon-to-be-husband’s hand and bringing it up to his lips to kiss the ring. As always, it sent a thrill up Viktor’s spine. </p>
<p>“We’ll be there,” Lilia told them, abruptly.</p>
<p>They both blinked. Viktor couldn’t help but be surprised; he had no worries that the Queen of the Gods would disapprove, but he hadn’t quite been sure if she would bother attending.</p>
<p>“Really?” Viktor beamed. “Oh, perfect!”</p>
<p>“We will?” Yakov repeated, then winced, upon receiving the sharp look from Lilia. “We will,” he hastily amended.</p>
<p>“Thank you,” Yuuri said, brightening up. Viktor could see him lighten up, clearly relieved of countless nights spent worrying over Lilia and Yakov’s reception of the engagement. “We really appreciate you being there.”</p>
<p>“Hm.” Lilia still looked stoic, but there was something there. A little twitch of the corner of her lip. “On one condition.”</p>
<p>Yuuri didn’t look surprised, and Viktor couldn’t bring himself to be either. They had both known Lilia for a while, and knew that she was all about <em> quid pro quo</em>, being the Goddess of Justice.</p>
<p>“Sure,” Yuuri finally decided. “What is it?”</p>
<p>Lilia gestured at one of the thrones. It was made of some dark wood, and the back was decorated with shining blue sapphires. Viktor, having spent most of his early life watching meetings between the Olympians in the throne room, recognized it as belonging to Lord Hades. He hadn’t seen it ever occupied, and he doubted many others had been granted the privilege to see it either.</p>
<p>“Your seat on the pantheon has remained empty,” Lilia said. “I’d say it’s high time you returned to Olympus, don’t you?”</p>
<p>Yuuri was staring, wide eyed. “Are… are you sure-” he began, bewildered. </p>
<p>“You think you were not worthy of a seat on Olympus, or that you did not belong.” Lilia interrupted. She said this with a surprising amount of gentleness, though her voice was firm. “That is simply not true.”</p>
<p>Yuuri looked flustered. “I never was any help in matters concerning <em> life- </em>”</p>
<p>“Just accept it, Hades,” Yakov scowled. “Stop looking a gift horse in the mouth.”</p>
<p>“Just join us, Katsudon,” Yurio added, glaring at him. “It’ll be nice to have one more person I can at least <em> tolerate </em> in the pantheon.”</p>
<p>Even Otabek, ever silent and aloof, cut in. “You’ll do a fine job,” he said, face unreadable.</p>
<p>That snapped Yuuri out of it. He immediately thanked them, babbling about promising to attend more meetings and making plans to return to Olympus more frequently, all while squeezing Viktor’s hand. He couldn’t have been happier for his fiancé, watching him ramble and gush about his future plans. </p>
<p>They made conversation for a little bit longer, something that Yuuri, Viktor noted, was growing far more comfortable with. Eventually, Lilia and Yakov politely exited the conversation to converse with some other Olympians. At least, that was the excuse they gave. Viktor was pretty sure they needed to stop Seung-gil from throttling an unsurprisingly drunk JJ, if the shouting from outside the throne room was any indication. Celestino, as usual, was doing little to intervene, instead watching the scene with amusement. </p>
<p>Viktor let out a sigh. </p>
<p><em> Some things never change</em>, Viktor thought in amusement, <em> no matter how long you’re away from home. </em></p>
<p>“I sure hope you weren’t waiting up for me,” Chris said, approaching their group with a wide smile.</p>
<p>“Never,” Phichit teased. “Where were you?”</p>
<p>Chris shrugged, then winked at them. “I’m sure you don’t want to know.”</p>
<p>“We don’t,” Yurio deadpanned. The rest of them laughed while Chris pouted.</p>
<p>“I didn’t get to thank you,” Yuuri said, looking at Otabek, who had remained mostly stoic since joining their group. “For the rings. They really are beautiful.”</p>
<p>“Yes!” Viktor tacked on, nodding excitedly. “I still don’t know how you did that behind my back, Yuuri.”</p>
<p>“He got Yura to do it,” Otabek said, simply, as if this explained everything. Yurio ducked his head, trying to hide the reddening cheeks incited by the nickname. “And you’re welcome. You paid me well for it, anyways. Had a lot of leftover gold after making those, so let me know if you need anything else.”</p>
<p>Viktor’s face lit up. “Ooh! Do you think you could make us matching crowns? Or- or-”</p>
<p>Yurio groaned. “Look what you did, Beka, you got him started,” he complained, causing Viktor to pout and everyone else to laugh.</p>
<p>“Nectar, anyone?” Phichit asked, as a nymph came by with a tray full of goblets. Everyone accepted, taking a goblet. All except Yuuri.</p>
<p>“No thanks,” Yuuri denied, smiling apologetically. “I don’t drink.”</p>
<p>This got him several strange looks from everyone, Viktor included.</p>
<p>“Don’t… drink?” Viktor repeated, furrowing his eyebrows.</p>
<p>“Viktor, we’ve been together for almost a year now,” Yuuri said, matching his confusion. “How do you not know this?”</p>
<p>“You drink wine all the time,” Viktor protested, because something didn’t fit.</p>
<p>“Human alcohols don’t get us <em> drunk,</em> Viktor,” Yuuri argued. “I don’t drink nectar.”</p>
<p>“Since when?” Viktor was bewildered.</p>
<p>“Since-” Yuuri began, frowning, but whatever he was going to say died on his lips. He looked embarrassed all of a sudden, as if remembering something.</p>
<p><em> Wait, okay, hold on… </em>Viktor’s mind was racing.</p>
<p>“You didn’t have a problem with nectar the last banquet you came to,” Chris cut in, voicing what everyone was clearly thinking.</p>
<p><em> Yes exactly, so then what is he going on about? </em> Viktor wondered, completely baffled, as he took another sip of nectar.</p>
<p>Yuuri groaned. “Yeah, exactly. That’s the reason I stopped. I got so black out that I don’t even remember that banquet at all.”</p>
<p>Everything in Viktor’s mind came to a grinding halt. He froze and, in a split second, reflected on the last year and a half with Yuuri in his life, since the moment he found the God of the Underworld snooping around his gardens. Then, the final puzzle piece fit into place.</p>
<p>
  <em> Oh, gods. </em>
</p>
<p>Viktor’s eyes snapped open, and he spat out the nectar. Everyone was frozen, watching him whip his head around to stare at his fiancé in shock.</p>
<p>“Viktor?” Yuuri asked, concernedly rubbing his back. “Are you okay?”</p>
<p>“Are you telling me,” Viktor managed, completely ignoring the question in favor of narrowing his eyes at his fiancé. “That you don’t <em> remember?</em>”</p>
<p>Yuuri looked completely lost. “Huh?”</p>
<p>“At the banquet,” Chris responded, casually. “Two years ago. You got wasted on nectar and started dancing.”</p>
<p>Yuuri wore a horrified expression on his face. “I did what?!” he squawked.</p>
<p>“It was the worst thing I’ve ever seen!” Yurio added, with a scowl. “I got dragged into a dance-off, it was humiliating!”</p>
<p>“And lost!” Leo added, cheerfully.</p>
<p>“Shut it!”</p>
<p>“Tell me you’re kidding,” Yuuri begged, his face growing redder with every passing moment.</p>
<p>“It’s true,” Chris informed him, smiling innocently. “I brought out the pole. You didn’t tell me you could pole dance, Yuuri!”</p>
<p>Yuuri screamed, holding his face with his hands. Viktor, the more he ruminated, realized he had never seen Yuuri drunk after they had met in the garden. The Furies had regaled Viktor with many embarrassing stories of his humiliating drunken antics, but he had never seen Yuuri drink nectar in the past year and a half.</p>
<p>And now that he thought about the banquet two years ago, Yuuri probably couldn’t handle his liquor as well as Viktor originally thought he could. Yuuri had looked uncomfortable in the beginning of the night, skirting away from anyone who tried to make conversation. That is, before he drank sixteen goblets of nectar, challenged both the God of War and the God of Beauty to dance-offs, and then proceeded to pull Viktor into a waltz across the dance floor, all while crooning about how beautiful he was and how much he admired the work Viktor did on Earth. By the end of the night, Yuuri had been hanging onto Viktor like he was his lifeline, asking to come visit his gardens, because they were rumored to be the most beautiful place on Earth, and begging him to show him how to grow life, instead of how to take it away.</p>
<p>“I still have videos!” Guang Hong added.</p>
<p>“So do I, would you like to see?” Chris held up his phone. Yuuri screamed again, while Phichit made grabby hands for the phone, eyes bright with mirth.</p>
<p>“Absolutely,” he declared.</p>
<p>“Absolutely not!” Yuuri yelled, mortified.</p>
<p>Viktor watched Yuuri wrestle Phichit for the phone for a good few minutes, while the other gods crowded around to see what all the fuss was about. Eventually, he managed to pull an incredibly embarrassed Yuuri away from the curious group of gods and goddesses and out into the quiet streets of Olympus, leaving Phichit to triumphantly scroll through Chris’s pictures. Viktor made a mental note to send the God of Death photos from his own camera roll; he was sure Phichit would appreciate it.</p>
<p>“I can’t believe I did all of that,” Yuuri, who had managed to glimpse quite a few of the pictures that Chris had gleefully cycled through, groaned.</p>
<p>“I can’t believe you don’t remember anything,” Viktor said, shaking his head in disbelief. He thought he kept his tone teasing and upbeat, but some of his bitterness must have slipped through because Yuuri looked up at him with a frown.</p>
<p>“You’re upset,” he realized. “Why?”</p>
<p>“I’m not upset,” Viktor answered, automatically. Yuuri stopped in his tracks, pulled Viktor to face him, and forced him to make eye contact. </p>
<p>“Viktor,” Yuuri said, sharply. “You’re upset I forgot. Why?”</p>
<p>Viktor grimaced a bit. “I mean,” he said, sheepishly. “I’m not upset, not really. It’s just that…” he trailed off, and felt his face grow warm as he thought back on the events of the last year and a half.</p>
<p>Luckily for Viktor, his fiancé was smarter than he gave him credit for and far more attuned with Viktor than he could ever know. Yuuri’s eyes widened.</p>
<p>“You’re… embarrassed,” he realized, looking almost delighted. “Why are <em> you </em> embarrassed?”</p>
<p>Viktor gave in, dropping the facade, and pouted. “I kidnapped you!”</p>
<p>Yuuri looked at him like he was an idiot. “Yeah,” he said, amusement shining in his eyes. “You did, Viktor. I thought we established this?”</p>
<p>“And- and you just let me?” Viktor sputtered. Then, his mind was going a million miles a minute. He let out a groan, burying his face in his hands. “I kidnapped the Lord of the Underworld, seemingly unprovoked, and I thought it was flirting. I thought you were just, I don’t know, playing coy, after everything you said during the banquet. But to you, I tried to kidnap you and hold you prisoner for a <em> year,</em> for apparently no reason? Why did you go along with it?!”</p>
<p>Viktor was suddenly questioning his fiancé’s sanity. Yuuri could have left at any point, so why would he spend a full year entertaining some delusional nature god?</p>
<p>“Well,” Yuuri purred, wrapping an arm around his waist. “Because you were kind, you were sweet, and you were <em> you</em>. How could I not be charmed? Even if you did kidnap me. Though, I was never really your prisoner for longer than like, an hour.” </p>
<p>Viktor pouted at the reminder that his wards were <em> maybe </em> not as strong as he had initially thought they were. Yuuri was, after all, one of the most powerful gods, so he probably should have realized earlier that he would be able to shatter Viktor’s wards like they were made of glass, regardless of how powerful he thought he was. It had certainly been a lesson in humility, on Viktor’s part.</p>
<p>That didn’t make it any less embarrassing.</p>
<p>Nor did it make the thought of their entire relationship, from Yuuri’s point of view, any less humiliating. Viktor covered his face with his hands, groaning. </p>
<p>“Hey,” Yuuri said, softly. He pulled Viktor’s hands from his face, smiling at him. “It all worked out for the best, didn’t it?”</p>
<p>Viktor couldn’t help but laugh.</p>
<p>“Yes,” he finally agreed, detaching himself from Yuuri’s arms to entwine their hands together. “I guess it did.”</p>
<p>Viktor leaned in to kiss him, when Yuuri suddenly backed away with a contemplative look on his face.</p>
<p>“What’s wrong?” Viktor asked, concerned.</p>
<p>“If I’m going to be spending more time on Olympus,” he said, slowly, “I should probably get my throne fixed up. No one’s used it in centuries- it’ll fall apart as soon as I sit in it."</p>
<p>Viktor groaned. “Is that what you’re concerned about right now,” he asked, incredulously.  “Thrones?”</p>
<p>Yuuri sent him a smirk that had him melting. “So,” he said, suspiciously casual. “I guess you <em> don’t </em> want a throne on Olympus, right by my side, my queen?” He purred out the pet name, a sly grin tugging at his lips.</p>
<p>Viktor gaped at him, before nearly tackling him in a hug and peppering his face with kisses.</p>
<p>“I,” he declared, in between kisses, “Love. You. So. Much.”</p>
<p>Yuuri was laughing, finally pulling Viktor into a kiss. Viktor felt like his heart was bursting out of his chest, full of love and adoration. His own throne, among the pantheon, just as he had always wanted. More importantly, side by side with Yuuri, the god he had fallen in love with.</p>
<p>“And,” Viktor added, once they broke the kiss. “That’s King of Spring to you. It’s March right now, which means…” He echoed Yuuri’s words from early that night back at him and leaned in close, relishing in the wide-eyed expression of his fiancé. “You’re my queen, now.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Excerpt from <em>The Language of Flowers</em> by Victoria Otto</p>
<p><a id="note1" name="note1"></a><sup>1</sup>Cornflower: wealth <sup>[<a href="#return1">return to text</a>]</sup></p>
<p><a id="note2" name="note2"></a><sup>2</sup>Violet: loyalty <sup>[<a href="#return1">return to text</a>]</sup></p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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